Self Healing
by Kismet23
Summary: A look at the healing process, postep for Blind Spot but will continue forward in time
1. Chapter 1

2:34 AM.

Alex's eyes flew open and immediately turned to the clock, for the third night in a row.

2:34 AM.

_How does my body know?_ After going through every detail with Bobby, Ross, IAB, and seemingly half the NYPD, she knew that the time was significant, but still she wondered how her body knew every night to wake up in a panic at exactly that moment. Weird; she would ask Bobby about it, but only on a day when she was in the right mood for a lecture on Circadian rhythms, adrenaline, and self-preservation instincts. Taking deep breaths to calm her racing heart, she was about to roll over and make an effort at getting back to sleep when she realized she couldn't move. Something heavy and warm was on her abdomen, effectively holding her in place. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she realized the impediment wasn't so much a some_thing_ as a some_one_. Bobby. The last thing she remembered was falling asleep while he read to her from the latest Smithsonian; good for a quick passout irregardless of sedatives, in her opinion. He must have fallen asleep after she did, poor thing. She suspected his usual insomnia had probably reached unprecedented heights in the wake of her kidnapping, and she sure wasn't going to disturb him now. But of course, being Bobby, he sensed somehow that she was awake, and began to awaken himself, brow furrowed in concern.

Without really thinking about it, she placed her hand on his head and began to stroke his hair and face, the way you would a cat. She watched with interest and not a small degree of amusement as his subconscious gave in to the comfort of her touch, even while his mind worked. She smirked to herself, knowing that a fully conscious Bobby would find some excuse for falling asleep across her body, not wanting to admit that protecting and being near her were the reasons he was able to sleep at all. But he was not the only cop in this partnership with an idea or two about human nature, and she instinctively wanted to make him feel better. She had never seen him quite so off kilter as when he met her in the hospital, and she knew he was feeling guilty and grateful and completely taken out of his comfort zone. At this moment, she wasn't sure that was entirely a bad thing. He looked completely relaxed under her touch, and she found herself relaxing as well, drifting off again as her mind allowed her body to rest. Just before falling asleep she took one of his hands in her free hand and held it near her heart, knowing, somehow, that he would feel her calm and be soothed by it.

It seemed like only a moment, but when she opened her eyes again, sunlight had begun to filter in through the blinds of her hospital room window. The heavy weight still rested on her stomach, large hand still wrapped around hers, and she felt both secure and relieved. As she looked down at Bobby, she realized with a start that he was not asleep; not at all. He was looking up at her with an expression she'd seen only a few times before, when she'd anticipated his thoughts or backed him up in some unpopular theory; part gratitude, part awe, a look of _I don't really deserve this _that made her want to travel back in time and kick his father's ass into kingdom come. And though it was only the briefest of moments, a teeny blip on the radar, she would swear she saw tears in his eyes when she whispered, softly, "Yes, you do."

They never really talked about it, that moment, though both of them would remember it with great clarity. Perhaps they never really had a chance; not long after, the nurse came in and began making noise about visiting hours and rules, though her lecture was halfhearted at best. Before she knew it Bobby was off to work, and she was involved in an incredibly exciting (_hah!_) day of tests, interviews, and well-meaning but ultimately annoying visits from her family. Everyone was so concerned, so behaved, it freaked her right the hell out. Bobby, who had assigned himself the graveyard shift, which she was sure was at least in part due to his delight in breaking the rules, found her assertion that a crowd of quiet and subdued Eames's was disturbing on a cellular level rather funny, though she noticed he didn't really disagree. His nearly 6 years as her partner had taught him well; a quiet Eames was generally plotting something unpleasant. But although she was currently quieter than usual, he seemed to accept that without question, and began to talk more than he normally would except on a case, telling her silly things about his childhood, the Army, his relationships with Lewis and other friends she had met. She found this amiable small talk comforting; it kept her from dwelling on her pain and worrying about his. But still, every night, 2:34 AM rolled around, and she unerringly found herself awake, short of breath, and heart pounding. Something had changed, though. While she was still afraid and a bit panicky, his constant presence and her ability, while he was sleeping, to freely express her affection and tenderness for him, helped her to overcome the panic and return to sleep. And each morning when they awakened to the sunrise, touching each other in some way, she felt just a little more hopeful than the day before.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Yikes, I forgot to put this in the first chapter. I own nothing. And truth be known, I'm a little bitter about that, but no harm is intended and I'm making no $. I promise to put everything back where I found it.**

9:59 AM.

She checked her watch one more time, hoping that she still had a window of time to get away, heart rate on the rise. Her eyes flew to the door; perhaps there was still time…

"Detective Eames?"

_Dammit. I almost made good my escape._ "Yes?"

"Good morning. Thank you for waiting. I'm Dr. Stevenson but please call me Beth; it's nice to meet you."

"Hi, um, nice to meet you too, I guess."

The doctor laughed. "Well, under the circumstances, that was very polite. Points for you, Detective. I know you don't want to be here, but the Department requires it, so I'm glad to see you've at least decided to be civil. I tend to get a lot of grunts."

"Me too." _Oh no, why did I say that? She's going to think I'm a weirdo. Backtrack, backtrack! _"I mean, my partner can be a little pre-verbal sometimes; it's not a problem though." _And stop narrowing your eyes at me, lady, I may be polite, but I am not some needy clingy wimp in need of hand-holding, so there._

"Your partner? By any chance would that be the rather imposing man pacing in front of my building?" Alex followed Beth into her office to look out the window, sure that he couldn't be there waiting already. And lo and behold, there he was, pacing in front of the building. _Great, Bobby, like I don't already feel helpless enough about needing a ride home, you had to be an hour early?_

"Yes," she told the doctor, "that's him. I guess he must have gotten the time wrong to pick me up. My brother just dropped me off a few minutes ago. Sorry about that. I can run outside and tell him to go have coffee or something if you want." _Yes, that's it! With the element of surprise, I can take the keys from him and be in Jersey in 10 minutes. Good plan, Alex. Go for it._

Beth gave her an even look that made Alex think perhaps this woman wasn't an idiot after all. "No, Detective Eames, you can stay here. Your partner is just fine where he is, so why don't we start?'

_Oh, let's not. There's a sale at Bloomingdale's and I'll buy you anything you want. _"OK. Sure."

"First off, would you like to tell me why you're here?"

_Well, I was almost used as a pincushion by a serial killer. And how was your day? _"I'm sorry, Dr…Beth, but I thought you had the file. I'm required to be here." _That sounded pissed off, oh hell, I am pissed off. Screw it._

Beth sighed, "Yes, you are, Detective, and you are also required to participate, so cut the crap, would you? Don't waste my time or yours."

_Direct and blunt. I may end up liking this chick. _"Okay, well, as you know, I was attacked in my home and kidnapped by a serial killer with a grudge against her father, who was my partner's mentor. I escaped, and I'm fine," Alex said with not a little pride.

"Your home? That's personal. Have you been back?"

_Aw, geez, lady, right in with the big stuff, huh? _"I went back with my brother and packed some things, but I'm actually renting a new place now. It was a crime scene for quite a while."

Beth was taking notes. "Where are you renting?"

"Um…in Brooklyn. My partner's landlord owns a few buildings, and he found an available short-term studio for me. I own the house, so I can afford to do it until the notoriety dies down a little." Alex hoped her voice sounded even. She wasn't really sure she would ever move back into the house, but she sure as hell wasn't going to tell that to a stranger. Neither was she planning to reveal that while the studio in Brooklyn pretty much sucked, its closeness to Bobby had been its biggest selling point. _I'm not that stupid, lady. _

Nodding, Beth asked, "I read about the case in the papers. Makes sense you wouldn't want to return until you're sure not to run into trouble. So, your partner helped you find a place? That was nice of him."

"Yes, it was. He's been very protective since this happened." _Understatement of the year, that. Between him and my brothers, I'm not even allowed to take the subway to my own therapy. Jackasses._

"And he's picking you up at therapy as well? It sounds like the two of you are close."

_Well, if you consider one partner treating the other like she's broken, then sure. We're close. He's lucky I understand how scared he was, or I'd be kicking his butt up and down Flatbush Avenue. I may still. _"We've been partners for almost six years. My car is evidence, and he was…um…understandably concerned when I disappeared, so…"

Beth smiled. "So, he's acting like you're delicate and its pissing you off, huh?"

Alex looked up in surprise. This woman might be okay after all. She smirked "That's about the size of it. I am making an effort to be patient." _And am very glad he's not insisting we shower together. Well, maybe not very glad, but…danger, Alex. Keep those thoughts out of your head. They'll bench your ass for sure. _"He's just worried."

"What about you? Are you worried?"

"I'm not exactly myself, but I'm getting better." _There. Honesty, lady, okay?_

"Well, good. If you weren't at least a little worried, I'd have reason to be." Beth looked down at her watch. "That's a good first start, Detective. You are required to attend at least six sessions with me, over a period of no longer than 60 days. Will this time work for you for next week?"

_That's it? We didn't even talk about my childhood. What a gyp. _"This time is fine." Alex got up to go, but was stunned when Beth put a gentle hand on her arm.

"Detective, I'm not out to hurt you, just to help. Anything you say in these sessions is kept confidential. All I do, once our sessions are finished, is report your mental status in a general way to the NYPD. So, next time, we're going to get past some of those defenses, okay?"

_Oh, god, are those tears in my eyes? Think about something annoying…Barney, traffic, Logan…oooh, that worked. _"OK." She left with her head held high, knowing that Bobby needed to see she was all right. He was still pacing, but stopped dead in his tracks when he saw her come out the door.

"How did it go?"

"Oh, fine, thanks, actually we talked about you most of the time."

"WHAT?"

_Heh. Take that, Mr. I'll Be Here an Hour Early. This therapy thing could turn out to be at least a little fun, after all._


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N – Thank you so much to everyone who's reading, and especially to those who have reviewed. Please don't be shy in telling me where I've gone astray, too. Constructive criticism is always welcome!**

11:23 AM

**The scene** – a used car lot and automotive repair shop, somewhere in the five boroughs

**The players** – One overprotective partner, one testosterone-driven but well-meaning mechanic, one recently-traumatized-but-not-giving-in-to-it-dammit detective.

**The plot** – A need for a new vehicle leads to hijinks; that's right, I said hijinks. You got a problem with that?

Alex rolled her eyes as Bobby awkwardly led her from the SUV, attempting to lift her down off the seat and block her view at the same time.

"Stop it right now, Goren. I am injured enough without you hauling me around like a sack of potatoes. _Puppy dog look, he really doesn't fight fair. _Why in the name of all that is holy will you not let me see where I'm going? Oh, geeze, I'll close my eyes, okay?" He smiles to himself. _Won that one without a big fight. _Then frowns. _She's gonna get me for it._

A voice from behind Bobby interrupts before his fear can fully set in "Detective Alex! You're here!"

She opens one eye only to see Bobby's big paw in front of it. "Hi, Lewis." She tries to look around Bobby to say a proper hello, only to have him plant himself firmly in her way. "Cut that out, it's annoying." He grins at her. "And that's even more annoying."

"No, Alex, don't ruin the surprise!" Lewis sounds almost panicked. "Just do what Bobby tells you to."

Well, that snort didn't sound ladylike, did it? _I never said I was a lady. _"The day that happens, Lewis, will be the day that hell freezes over and pigs wear tutus. What the hell are the two of you up to? Bobby, stop laughing this MINUTE." To his credit, he tries to look chastened, but he's not entirely successful. _Okay, go along with them. Then, when he's least expecting it, POW. Vengeance will be mine. _It was gratifying to see her normally intimidating partner take a step back on her glare. _That's right, buddy, you better look scared. _

Lewis, in the interests of keeping his childhood friend alive and in one piece, finished what he was doing quickly and piped up, "Bobby, its okay. She's ready"

With one last fearful look in her direction, the obstacle with a badge stepped back, revealing Lewis standing beside a large object covered by an even larger…what was that, a dropcloth? Maybe a crime scene tarp. _Classy, but not helping much. What the hell is that thing, and why is Bobby acting so weird? _She turned to her partner, fire in her eyes, when it was Lewis to the rescue once again.

"I'm sorry it took so long, but I wanted her to be perfect. On the outside, at least. I still left plenty for you to do yourself, don't worry. And now, without further adieu, I present, the Detective Alex-Mobile!"

He pulled back the dropcloth/tarp/whatthehellever, to reveal a dark green, vintage Mustang hardtop. Alex was stunned into silence. _My god, that's beautiful! Where did they? How did they? Oh…no…_

Her heart started to race, and the edges of the world got just a bit fuzzy. She could hear Bobby and Lewis talking, but couldn't make out the words. Without a sound, she dropped down into a squat, and put her face in her hands, but it was too late. _Maybe if I just stay like this, for…ever, they won't notice…oh, god, did they notice?_

Lewis' eyes were as round as saucers. "Dammit, Bobby, she's CRYING. You didn't tell me she would cry! Oh, Detective Alex, I'm sorry. It was all this idiot's idea. I'll take it away, and you'll never have to see it again, I promise."

"NO. I…I love it. Thank you." She wasn't sure if they could hear her through her sobs, but she hoped so. Poor Lewis. He sounded totally panicked. She felt a hand, big and gentle, on her shoulder.

"Eames, it's okay. He's all right, but I sent him back inside. Do you want to try and stand up now?"

_Uh, no, thanks, I think I'll stay here and die of embarrassment. Nice way to react to a gift, Eames. Betcha you're a real treat at Christmas. _"Nope."

Bobby laughed. "Okay, I'll come down there." He sat down next to her, putting his hand on her face to tilt her chin up so she could see him. "You have nothing to be embarrassed about, Eames. That's the best reaction I've ever gotten to a present. I assume you like it?"

"Yes," she nodded, knowing it was inadequate thanks but not trusting her voice to say more. Then, regulations be damned, she threw her arms around his neck and hugged him fiercely. He stood up to avoid getting knocked over and just held her in his arms.

From a safe distance inside the garage, Lewis watched, and shook his head, smiling. "Sure, I build a girl a car, he gets the hug. Typical. Lucky for him I like him enough not to give him some real competition."

After she had recovered, Alex offered Bobby the first ride in her new car, henceforth to be known as DAM. He looked over shyly as she revved the engine. "If you want, you can drive yourself to therapy now."

She smiled at him, seeing the insecurity in his eyes. _Puppy dog look; two in one day, he's pulling out all the stops. You think I'm dumb enough to let you worry from afar, you idiot?_

"Are you kidding? Don't EVEN try to weasel out of chauffeur duty, Goren. You think I'm dumb enough to park this thing on the street, you idiot?"

He grinned. _Puppy dog look. Works every time._


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N - Thank you to all readers and reviewers. Reviews are like calorie-free candy. This is a short one but I promise they'll get longer and have more depth. Just need to lay a bit of groundwork.**

10:32 AM

"Alex…Alex? Earth to Alex!"

"Hmm…I'm sorry, Beth, what?"

Beth sighed "You were in a whole other world there for a minute. Now, I agreed that you could get up and move around during session, but I did not agree that you could stare out the window trying to send Bobby a telepathic message."

_How the hell did she know that? Great, even my shrink has freaky mind-reading powers. I'm a magnet for these people. _"He's not there yet. Besides, I'm not trying to send him any message, and you are avoiding answering my question." Alex turned to face Beth, giving her the patented Eames glare, Version 3 – don't mess with me.

"Can you go back to work? That question?"

Alex snorted. "No, the tips on hair care. YES, that question!" _Seriously, lady, if I can't get back to work soon, you are going to have to put me in a home. This sitting around thinking about shit? Not for me._

"Okay, Alex, I understand you're anxious to return to your job. You've been doing well here, discussing your fears, your worry about Bobby and your family, but you still can't seem to explain to me why it is so important for you to get back to work." Beth had a glare of her own. Version 2 – you're not fooling me.

_Ah, geeze. This isn't going to be pretty. _Alex took a deep breath. "Okay, here's the deal. I know that getting kidnapped and almost killed is a big, traumatic thing, and that I should be spending time reflecting and all that crap. But I'm getting worse sitting home alone, wondering what's going on at the squad, and, truth be told, worrying that the longer I'm gone, the harder it's going to be to go back. I'm **afraid** to go back on the job, okay, Beth? So I need to do it sooner than later." Alex sat down with a thud, feeling a headache start to pound behind her forehead. The next thing she heard was…laughter. _She's LAUGHING at me? Is she crazy? I still have a gun. _She looked up, about ready to unleash a very unpleasant stream of words the therapist would never forget.

Beth had stopped laughing, and was gently smiling at her. "I'm sorry, Alex, I wasn't laughing at you exactly, it's just that this is your third session, all you've really talked about is everyone else in your life, and now it all comes out in a big rush. How long have you been holding that in?"

Alex, hurt feelings still just below the surface, said dully, "A long time, I guess. Everyone is already so worried about me, walking on eggshells around me. I didn't want to tell them. I didn't really want to say it out loud."

"Well, you did, so good for you. I'd like to know what exactly it is about the job that's frightening you."

"I…I don't want to approach my job like a victim. Once you do that, you're done. If I overidentify with every victim we have, I can't be objective with evidence, and I won't be able to…" Alex stopped. She wasn't even sure she could say this part.

"To what?" Beth prodded gently.

"To..t-to have Bobby's back when he needs it. What if I freeze up, or get distracted, and I put him in danger?" Alex put her head in her hands. That headache was getting worse by the second. To her surprise, Beth was almost immediately in front of her, lifting her chin, forcing her to look in her eyes.

"You won't. I know one thing about you has become clear to me, Alex. You would never let Bobby Goren get hurt in your presence. Take that off your list of worries, you have enough of them."

Alex knew by looking in her eyes that Beth was telling her the truth. _Hmm…wonder where I might have picked up **that** particular skill? _She smiled. "Thanks."

Beth walked behind her desk and picked up a sheet of paper, handing it to Alex. "Here it is. Your clearance to return to work. It is conditional on your completing three more sessions, and you must call me if you find it too overwhelming, okay, Alex? I'm trusting you on this."

Alex took the paper, thrilled, confused, and still a little afraid of what this meant. "I'm not sure I understand. If you already had this ready to go, why did you make me ask for it?"

Beth grinned at her. "Professional interrogation technique, detective."

_Why, you sneaky little…using my own…I should kick your…_ "Thanks. See you next week." She tucked the paper in her pocket, ready now to go convince Bobby she was ready to return. As she walked out, under her breath, she whispered, "Bitch."

She could hear Beth laughing all the way down the hall.

_Fine, you've won this round, but I shall return to fight another day!_

_Time to get my damn keys back._


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N – Thanks to all readers and reviewers; you are very inspiring. A quick timeline note; the last chapter ended just before the events of _Siren Call_; this one picks up just after.**

7:36 PM

Alex sat at her desk, staring blankly at her laptop screen. As promised, she'd dropped Bobby off at his car so he could go visit his mother, and returned to the office herself to file the paperwork closing out the Wiznesky case. Well, closing it out might be too strong a phrase; essentially, they were handing it over to IAB, who would be reviewing the actions (and inactions) of the officer whose gun was used by Wiznesky. While she felt disdain for the officer having been so foolhardy as to cuff the veteran cop's hands in front of him, she was also sympathetic. The young cop was about to go through the wringer, and having just been through IAB's special brand of hell herself (and not for the first time), she knew the kind of inner strength it would take to get through. She hoped he had a good support system.

_Hah. _Her inner voice taunted, _Who are you to talk about support systems? Your partner and so-called friend didn't even bother to tell you about his mother's cancer. You like to think of yourself as the person he tells everything to…think again, hotshot._

She slammed the laptop cover shut and basically threw the folder into Ross' inbox. It was bad enough to feel like shit about not being there for your partner, but when your own conscience started berating you about it, it was time to take action.

9:50 PM

Roundhouse. Thwack, whoosh. Dance, dance, side kick. Thwack, whoosh. Shuffle, shuffle, push kick. Thwack. Bob and weave, bob and weave, roundhouse. Thwack, whoosh. Dance, dance, side kick. Thwack, wh..

"What in the HELL are you doing, Eames?"

Sweaty and disoriented, Alex looked up into the enraged face of her partner, who apparently had grabbed the heavy bag and stopped its motion from her last side kick.

"I'm working out."

"I can see that, Detective Eames. Why are you…"

_Oooh, Detective Eames. I'm scared now. _"Well, I'm kicking because I'm not allowed to punch for a while. There's still some lingering soft tissue damage in my shoulders, so…"

"EAMES!"

"So I figured I'd brush up on my kicks, in case I have to take down a perp with something other than my knee. Good idea, right?" She was ignoring the near-purple hue his face had taken on. _He's pissed at me? HE'S pissed at ME? Screw him. _Without warning, she pivoted on her right foot and landed a roundhouse directly behind his right knee. She was thrilled when she managed to resist the urge to shout "Timber!" when he went down, but less thrilled with the fact that his windmilling arms caught her in the middle of her back and brought her right down with him.

Next thing she knew, she was laying facedown, on a thankfully soft gym mat, next to more than 200 pounds of stunned and truly pissed off Bobby. _Well, it's on now, I guess._

"Eames, why the hell did you do that?" Bobby spoke through clenched teeth. Alex could see that he was struggling to maintain some level of composure, but it was bound to be a losing battle.

"You know what, Goren? It's about damn time someone took you down a peg, you arrogant son of a bitch. I'm just glad I got to be the one to do it." Alex stood up, brushing herself off, chin held high in defiance. She was proud that she held his gaze, despite seeing a dark anger in his eyes that was usually reserved for the interrogation room.

"Detective, forgive me for being concerned about you. I've been calling your cell for hours, I stopped by your apartment and you weren't there, you weren't at the squad. I was worried, is that all right by you? Is that allowed?"

"No," Alex was shaking now, with anger and…something else, too. "I don't need a babysitter, Bobby. I am a grown woman, and if I want to work out without checking in with you, I can do that. Do me a favor – stop trying to take care of me. It's pissing me off!"

Bobby grabbed her arm, none too gently. "I have no interest in being your babysitter, but I will not stop trying to take care of you. You're my partner, you got hurt, and I want to look out for you, WHETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT!" The pain in his eyes was too much. Alex pulled away from him, stumbling, not even sure where she was going. She sat down hard and took a few deep breaths, keeping her eyes focused on the ground. _I can't keep doing this. I need to get my emotions under control._

When she felt she could trust herself, she looked up to see if he was even still there. He was staring at her, still a little angry, clearly very confused, and he, too, was trying to get himself under control.

"Why didn't you tell me, Bobby?"

The anger was gone now, but the confusion and hurt remained. He looked down at her, a woman he wasn't even sure he knew at the moment, and wondered how the hell this fight had even happened. He spoke softly "Tell you about what, Eames? Did I miss something?"

"Your, your mother. Why didn't you tell me? I would have been there for you." Alex looked up at him, knowing what he would say, hoping he wouldn't say it.

"I didn't want to worry you. You have enough on your plate without taking on my problems too."

Her anger was back in a flash and she was on her feet again, in his face. "Jesus Christ, Bobby! We're partners, or at least we were partners. This is the kind of thing you tell your partner, especially if she's your friend. The last goddamn thing I need right now is you, of all people, treating me like there's something wrong with me. THERE'S NOTHING WRONG WITH ME. I got kidnapped, and it sucked, and I know it sucked for you too, but every time you try to protect me, you…" She was desperately trying not to cry now, hoping she could turn back time, take the damn cell phone to the gym, and avoid having ever had this dangerous conversation.

He had moved closer now; his eyes were softer, searching hers for an answer she didn't want to give. "Eames, finish what you're saying. Every time I try to protect you,"

"You make me feel like a victim again." She put her hand over her eyes to shield them from him. These were not feelings she wanted her partner to have to cope with. "Bobby, I thought you told me everything, because that was our deal. As long as we're partners, we tell all, the good stuff and the bad. When you keep things from me, it makes me think that maybe you don't see me as a partner anymore. Maybe I'm just…damaged goods."

To say that Bobby was taken aback by this outburst would be an understatement. He couldn't seem to find words to say to her; for once, his ability to respond to everything said to him was missing.

Alex took her hand from her eyes and just looked at him, tears freely flowing now, and she just didn't care. "That's what I thought."

Before he knew it, she was gone.


	6. Chapter 6

11:17 PM

Alex sat cross-legged on the futon that also served as her bed, listening to the rain tapping on her windows. Her workout had left her exhausted and sore, but the argument with Bobby had sparked an adrenaline rush from which she had still not recovered. Despite taking a long hot shower and changing into the silk pajamas her sister had bought (for more comfy recovery time), she was still wired, and sleep was not looking possible tonight. Besides, she knew at some point Bobby would come down off his anger and was likely to get in touch with her. And that thought kept her adrenaline flowing. _What have I done?_

She heard the key turn in the door, and braced herself. _Round Two_

Bobby walked in, dripping wet, carrying a brown paper bag, and looking…hard-faced, and just as tired as she was. Out of habit, he automatically hung his raincoat on the hook near the front door, before taking a look across the room at his clearly nervous partner. With her hair pulled back in a haphazard ponytail and wearing pajamas that hung on her petite frame loosely, sitting like a kid, he thought he'd never seen her looking quite so vulnerable. He winced, almost involuntarily, knowing that in order to resolve what had happened this night, he would have to confront her, vulnerable or not.

"You're wet."

"It's raining."

"Yeah."

As he walked into her kitchen, she got up from the futon and made her way, careful to leave him a wide berth, to her bathroom. In a moment, she was back, standing in the doorway to the kitchen, holding out a towel to him. He shook his head. "It's okay." Without really thinking about it, she put the towel down on a small table just outside the kitchen.

"What did you bring?"

"Scotch."

"Why?"

"We're going to need it."

He handed her a nearly-full glass and poured one for himself as well. She backed into the living room (okay, the only room) and returned to her spot on the futon. As he was a little too tall to sit comfortably on the futon, he took an overstuffed armchair in the corner, one she had come to think of as "his" chair. For a moment, all they did was look at one another. No longer able to stand the tense silence, Alex started to try and apologize, "Bobby, I…"

"Shut up and drink your Scotch. You've already had your say."

She read the look in his eyes, shut up, and drank her Scotch.

He took a deep swallow, then a deep breath. "Okay, Eames, first off, I don't ever want anyone else but you for a partner, which I think you already know. So your accusations back there about my seeing you as damaged goods were bullshit. Our partnership is the one thing I think we don't have any problems with. Are you upset that I got you out of that room today? Is that what this is about?"

"No, that was the right move for the situation."

"So you would agree that, as a partner, I have not been treating you any differently than I ever have. You know that I trust you with my life."

The Scotch was leaving a warm trail down her throat to her stomach, and she was starting to breathe regularly again. "Yes. And I trust you with mine."

"Okay, then". He stood up, running a hand absently through his damp hair. "As to your accusation that I am trying too hard to protect you, that's true. The hours when you were missing, and when I realized that it was Jo Gage who hurt you to get back at her father, and at me, were the worst hours of my life, bar none. So I am being overprotective. And I have just one thing to say to you about that, Eames."

"What?" She looked up at him expectantly, thinking an apology was imminent.

"Tough shit." His eyes looked directly into hers, and she saw that he was not kidding.

"Excuse me?"

:"You heard me. Tough shit, Eames. You are not the only one who has some issues to deal with about that situation, and you are just going to have to deal with the fact that, for a while, I'm going to be taking care of you."

Her anger, dissipated a bit by time and the Scotch, was beginning to stir in the pit of her stomach again. "I don't need you to take care of me, Bobby. I can take care of myself just fine."

He looked directly into her eyes. "Yes, you can. But you don't have to, and right now I need you to let me look out for you for a while. I always let you be protective of me when I'm hurting, don't I?"

_What the hell does that have to do with anything? _"Yes, Bobby, but that's different."

"Why is it different?"

"Because it's not me!"

He smiled at her, knowing that he'd finally gotten to the damn point. "Exactly; you want to be able to take care of me, but I can't do the same? How fair is that, Eames?"

She sighed. "I didn't say it was fair, Bobby. It's just how we are."

"Things have changed."

"Well, fuck that, I don't WANT things to have changed. I want everything back to the way it was!"

They were standing inches apart, he towering over her, her frustration like a wild thing alive in the room with them. He looked at her, his face softening. "If I could give that to you, I would in a heartbeat. But it's just not possible; we can't undo what's happened."

She stared up at him, knowing he was right, and hating it. Deflated, she whispered, "I know. I'm sorry. You've been so good to me, and I took it out on you."

He grinned at her. "Yeah, you were pretty tough. And I was wrong to get mad at you for not checking in with me, but I think the bruises on my knees are payback enough, okay?"

Feeling a little embarrassed, Alex laughed. "Yeah, I showed you, huh?"

"Don't ever doubt for a minute that I know very well you could kick my ass without breaking a sweat. This is why I let you drive."

She grinned. "The Scotch was a good idea. Let's have some more." She took his glass as well as her own into the kitchen to pour refills. When she returned, he had reclaimed "his" chair. She handed him his glass, taking a generous drink from her own. Absentmindedly, she picked up the towel from earlier, put her glass on the table, and walked over to him. He was going to catch pneumonia hanging around with his hair all wet. Standing in front of him, she began, gently, to dry his hair.

He looked up at her. "Bringing things back to the way you want them?"

"Yes, and if you don't like it, to quote a very good friend of mine, tough shit." He smiled up at her, feeling better than he had in a long time. If this was what Scotch did to Eames, he would go out tomorrow and buy a case. "Bobby, about your mom. I am sorry, but I really do wish you would have told me."

He sighed. _Well, that moment didn't last very long._ She was still toweling his hair, though, so he figured arguing was a bad idea. "I should have told you, but I'm still sorting out how I feel about it. Part of me thinks that her being sick might give her some relief from her demons, something real to fight for a change, but when I think about her dying…"

Eames hands stilled. "What?"

"I think that when she dies, I'll lose the only person in the world who loves me, even if it's imperfectly, you know?"

_You moron. Scotch or not, I will not let you get maudlin on me. _She knew exactly the dose of reality he needed. Stepping closer, she took his Scotch glass away, placed it on the table, and said in a soft tone, "You're wrong about that Bobby." He looked up at her, eyes damp and hopeful. "Lewis loves you."

For just the briefest of moments, he looked hurt, but when he saw the glint in her eyes, he smiled. "Ah yes, Eames, the love that dares not speak its name. Thank you for reminding me."

Laughing, she put her arms around him, and cradled his head to her chest. "I love you, you idiot."

"I love you too, you bitch."

He pulled his head away just a little to look up at her. Their eyes locked.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N – My continued thanks for reading and reviewing. While I don't think this warrants an M, these are grown-ups doing and saying grown-up things, so be advised.**

Laughing, she put her arms around him, and cradled his head to her chest. "I love you, you idiot."

"I love you too, you bitch."

He pulled his head away just a little to look up at her. Their eyes locked.

She smiled as she lowered her head to his, kept smiling as their lips touched softly, a bit hesitantly. It didn't matter. The warmth the Scotch had brought to her stomach was a pale shadow of this. His arms tightened around her, and he deepened the kiss, gently opening her lips with his tongue. He tasted of Scotch, and intensity, and Bobby.

After what seemed forever, they pulled away, both breathing heavily and both smiling. "Wow," she said, looking into his eyes. "Wow," he agreed. He gently took hold of her hands, bringing them in front of his lips, kissing her wrists. "Damaged goods, my ass, woman." She laughed, a sound so rare of late, and one he treasured. She framed his face with her hands, and leaned in to capture his lips again, whispering "I love you" just before kissing him with a passion she hadn't felt since the early days of her young marriage.

His large, graceful hands were trembling as he unbuttoned the top of her pajamas. Her kiss wasn't helping him concentrate, and those buttons were tiny. He moaned at the loss of her hands on his face, then felt them cover his and assist in undoing the last of the buttons. With her top open, she looked at him, a little nervousness beginning to show. _I am not one of his Amazon goddesses. _He kissed her shoulder, his stubble marking a hot trail along her neck, as he gently, almost reverently, removed her top. She closed her eyes, not wanting to see if he was disappointed. He gasped, "Eames, you're beautiful," before wrapping his arms around her waist and kissing his way down her chest. He paused at her breast, waiting to see if she would resist or change her mind.

She felt goosebumps rise on her flesh, and placed one hand at the back of his head, giving him permission to continue. His mouth was hot and moist on her, and she felt the last of her doubts crumble into a desire so strong it would be frightening were she with anyone else. Pulling away from him, she ignored his groan of protest, taking his hands in her own to hoist him to his feet. Silently thanking him for having removed his tie before coming over, she began to unbutton his shirt, needing to see and feel all of him. His hands wandered her torso as she caressed him, not wanting to lose contact for even a moment. His sharp intake of breath when she began to undo his belt served only to increase her haste. "Eames," he warned, sure that this experience would be all too brief if she moved too quickly. A slight mocking tone in her voice, she leaned up to breathe heavily in his ear, "Goren."

He growled at her, deciding to take back some control before it became impossible. She found herself short of breath from just the sound of that growl, and its promise of things to come. _Oh, I am in for it now. _With seemingly no effort, he lifted her off her feet, bringing her face to his and kissing her fervently. Instinctively she wrapped her legs around his waist, pulling him as close as possible, feeling his heat meet her own. In two long strides he carried her over to the futon, one arm across her back holding her safely in place as he brought the futon into bed position. Gently, he placed her down, his senses reeling at what they were about to do. Eyes locked on hers, he finished undressing, then leaned down and placed his hands at the waistband of her pajama bottoms. Almost imperceptibly she nodded, giving him the encouragement he needed to continue.

As he removed her last barrier of clothing, he closed his eyes, almost overwhelmed at the sight of her. Her eyes wandered his body, seeing all of him for the first time, wanting to memorize the contours of flesh, wanting to hold on to the moment. Carefully he laid himself out on top of her, knowing he needed to keep from resting too much of his weight on her. Again he kissed her deeply, hands roaming her body, learning its secrets from the soft sounds vibrating from her mouth into his.

"Condom?" he asked.

"Pill," she answered.

"Thank you." She almost giggled at his courtly manners even now, but stifled it, realizing that she wasn't yet sure how open to silliness he might be at this moment. _A thought to explore for later. A man who can't laugh in bed will need some training. _Her wandering thoughts became thoroughly focused in a heartbeat as she felt him position himself over her. She looked up at him, nervous, aroused, and relieved all at the same time. His eyes promised her that next time he would draw out this moment, but for now, they both needed to take this step quickly, finally.

Partners.

6:02 AM

Alex woke to a tiny sliver of light in her eyes, blinking away sleepiness, automatically looking over at the clock, assuming a time she did not see. Tears sprung up unbidden as she realized the significance of what time it wasn't. The heavy weight had moved up from her abdomen to just below her shoulder, but its hands still protected her belly, in a gesture almost primal. Her soft crying woke him.

"Eames…oh, no, please don't cry. I'm sorry, so sorry. I should never have…"

She realized in a flash he thought she was feeling regret. _Dear God, is he kidding me? _"Bobby, look at the clock," she whispered. His eyes, still burning with fear, followed her gaze to the alarm clock on a nearby bookshelf. Brow furrowed, she watched him try to figure out why she was worried about time. Today wasn't a workday. Then she saw his face relax into a broad smile. "You slept through the night."

"Robert, if that's what you call sleeping, it's no wonder you always look so damn tired."

His laughter was like a salve on her skin, a rarity that she prided herself on being one of the very few to inspire. "Alexandra, if you think that's a sleepless night, I have a lot to teach you."

His hands were beginning to wander again, skimming over her flesh in a whisper. "You know," she said, "I'm not really so much of a morning person." Her hands were wandering now as well, bearing out her lie, proving that she was an anytime kind of person, with him.

He lifted his head from her neck, stopping his nuzzling long enough to remind her. "Tough shit."


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N – The lack of time/date stamps this season makes timing a little hard, but for my purposes, I've assumed that Siren Call only covered about 5 days. Also, I apologize in advance if you're from West Virginia. I kid because I love.**

10:21 AM

"What's going to happen to Mrs. Wiznesky?" Beth asked, after Alex had filled her in on the events of the week.

"She has a lot to deal with, but I think her family is coming to help her with her treatments and with her daughter. Hopefully she'll be okay."

"And what about you? Will you be okay?"

"I think so. I didn't like having to draw my gun so soon after going back on the job, but you were right. I didn't let Bobby down." Alex smiled at Beth from her perch on the couch. _If you only knew._

"That's important to you, not letting Bobby down, not letting him get hurt. Is that why you got so angry with him for not telling you about his mother's illness? He didn't give you the opportunity to help him?"

"That was part of it. Mostly I was just angry in general, and he was the easiest target." Alex winced at the memory of the pain and confusion in his eyes. She would feel shame about that moment for a long time to come. _No matter how it turned out, I struck out at him, hurt him._

"Is he still angry with you about the things you said?" _Not since I did that thing my college boyfriend taught me, no. Geez, Alex, mind out of the gutter in therapy, please._

"He understands. He said," Alex lowered her voice in a bad imitation of her partner, "it's okay, Eames. You're allowed." She smiled.

Beth laughed, "You've been partners for six years and he still calls you Eames? That's unusual for two people as close as the two of you are, isn't it?"

_Honey, you have no idea how sexy your last name can sound when said in the right tone at the right moment. _"Um, I guess it's unusual if you don't know why. It's kind of a strange story, actually."

"Alex, I hate to break it to you, but you're here to tell me your stories, even the strange ones."

"Well, it's not really my story, but if it will keep you entertained, Beth." Alex smirked as Beth sat back, looking very amused. "At first, it was just professional, or so I thought. It's kind of standard in the department for all cops to be called by their last names, especially female cops. Kind of our way of keeping things formal. But about 4 months into being partners with Bobby, he asked me to call him by his first name, and I told him to feel free to do the same. He just said he liked the name Eames, if it was okay with me, and I told him it was fine. But it bothered me that he wouldn't call me Alex, like he was keeping his distance in the partnership, you know?"

Beth nodded, "You wanted to be on equal ground with him."

"Exactly. I asked him about it a few times, but he was very evasive, which Bobby is really good at. Finally, I decided to use my detective skills, and I asked his friend Lewis, who does call me Alex, well, Detective Alex anyway," she smiled. "You sort of have to understand about Bobby for this next part. He is, as you noticed, very intimidating physically, and apparently, grew to that height pretty early. But by nature, he's not a violent person; he doesn't like physical confrontation at all. So, according to Lewis, every bully in school would choose him to pick on, like some sort of proving ground of manhood; beat up the biggest guy in school, and you're the shit. And, Bobby being Bobby, never fought back." _Because when he did it at home, things only got worse. Thing number 34 on the list of reasons I hate his father more than he does._

Beth leaned forward, reading an expression of anger and pain in Alex's eyes. "So he got beat up a lot?"

Alex sighed. "I wouldn't say that; he just let them do what they did and walked away. Whatever; it's in the past now, can't change it."

"But you'd like to, if you could."

"Yes," she said truthfully, strong emotion making her voice a little shakier than she'd like. "If I could do that, I would. But that's not the point of the story, Beth."

"Well, to some extent, it is the point of the story for you, Alex, so give me a break, okay? It's clear you feel very protective towards your partner; what's not clear is if you understand that you are not responsible for what happened to him when he was younger. You say you can't change his past, but do you truly believe that?"

Alex was seething. "Of course I believe it, but it doesn't make it any easier to know about. Anyway, the point of the story is that, according to Lewis, there was one kid who, no matter how many times Bobby walked away, just kept coming after him, just couldn't let it go."

"And the kid's name was Alex." Beth wasn't really surprised at this revelation; in light of everything Alex had told her, she and Bobby were very reliant on one another. It made sense that he wouldn't want to associate her with a bad memory.

"Right – you guessed it. Do you get a bonus for that?" Alex's anger still whirled inside her like a tornado. She had no idea what made her even start this story; in a way, she felt like she betrayed Bobby and Lewis' trust by telling it to an outsider.

Beth decided it was time to give Alex a dose of her own medicine. "Of course, Detective, the NYPD is keeping me in furs and jewels out of their great interest in your reaction to something that didn't even happen to you!"

Alex head jerked up in surprise. Though Beth was hard on her, keeping her honest, she had never spoken to her in such a harsh tone before. "If it happened to Bobby, it affects me, Beth, okay? He's my partner"

"He's more than that."

"He's my friend."

"He's more than that."

For the first time, fear hit Alex in the gut like a punch. _She knows something. Shit. She may say these sessions are confidential, but if she thinks Bobby and I are a danger as partner, she'll tell someone. Reel it back in, Alex, you can still save this if you think fast._

"He's like my brother." _If we were from West Virginia. Okay, that was a bad joke. This is deteriorating fast._

Beth grinned at her. "Your brother, huh? That's the story you're going with?"

Alex looked her square in the eye. "Yup."

Laughing, Beth said, "Okay, if that's what you're selling today, I'll buy it. But we will discuss this further in your next session, Alex."

_Great. Time to come up with a good story, and possibly a disguise. _"So, we're done here then?"

"Sure. I'll see you next week. And Alex?"

_Inches away from freedom, dammit. _"Yes?"

"I'd like Bobby to come with you next time. It won't be an official NYPD session, I promise, but I think to understand you, I'm going to need to understand him a little better. Okay?"

_Okay? Sure, like root canal is okay.. _"I'll ask him."

"Well, if you're the one asking, I'm sure he'll say yes." Beth walked her to the office door. "I'll see both of you next week."

_Only if we can't come up with two disguises. _"Okay."

Alex walked towards the front entrance as slowly as possible; her original excitement at being free from Beth and her questions had quickly faded into trepidation at having to tell Bobby the shrink wanted to see him, too. As she opened the door to find him, as always, pacing in front of the SUV, a wave of affection for this unusual and complicated man hit her. She nearly flew down the stairs and into his arms. This was Bobby; he would never blame her or be angry; he would understand.

Surprised and delighted by her willingness to be held by him in public, Bobby simply pulled her closer and rubbed her back, kissing the top of her head. "How'd it go?"

Alex looked up at him, so concerned, so loving, and knew that whatever this new development meant, they'd figure it out together. "It was interesting, that's for sure. I'll tell you all about it tonight, I promise." She pulled away, taking the keys from his pocket as she did. "Let's get to work."

Bobby tilted his head to try and read her eyes, then decided to let it go for the moment. "Let's go."

From her upstairs window, Beth watched this exchange with great interest, and no small amount of amusement. _Her brother, my ass._


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N - Sorry, Kentucky. Geez, only 48 more states to offend. Anyway, more grown-up stuff, FYI.**

9:18 PM

"Both of us? She wants to see both of us? Like couples' therapy?" Bobby paced the floor of his living room, absently running his hand through graying curls. Watching him from her spot on the edge of his couch, Alex was glad she'd thought to suggest coming back here tonight; she knew he would need to pace, and her studio offered him very little room to really get his groove on.

"Well, more like brother and sister therapy, really." She looked up at him, hoping he was going to buy that.

"Sure, if we were from Kentucky." Alex was not quite successful in suppressing a rather loud snort at that comment. _Right attitude, wrong state. I'm rubbing off on him. In fact, at the moment, hair all messy, I'd like to be rubbing…_

"Do you think she knows?" Her erotic thoughts were interrupted by his genuine concern.

"I think she suspects. She doesn't know anything, but even if she did, these sessions are supposed to be confidential, Bobby. She can't tell anyone."

"Tell it to Mark Fuhrman, Eames. His LAPD therapy sessions ended up on the cover of the _Enquirer_."

"You're mad. I'm sorry, Bobby, but I'm supposed to be telling her everything; it's really hard to hide something this important."

In an instant, he was in front of her, stroking her hair. "I'm not mad at you, and I don't want to hide. It's just that if the department finds out before we figure out how to handle it, they'll split us up. What if they make me work with Bishop again?"

Alex laughed at his naiveté. "Bobby, that's not going to happen. I think Bishop has the Witness Protection Program holding a spot for her just in case. Every time I see her, she looks at my stomach to make sure I'm not pregnant again."

He chuckled, "Yeah, she did seem a little…intimidated by me."

"She was scared to death of you. And I didn't really help, to be honest."

Head-tilt. "What do you mean?"

She grinned at him. "I didn't want her getting too comfortable, so every time she'd come to me with her little 'Goren's weird' stories, I'd just tell her 'you have no idea'. I think she's pretty convinced she got off easy."

Still stroking her hair, he moved closer. Even at the edge of the couch, she was facing his chest. "Are you saying you were jealous, Eames?"

"Damn right, buddy. You're **my **brother, and she can't have you."

He laughed. "Well, as your brother, I don't want anyone else to have me. I'm all yours, Eames." He pulled her close, leaning down to whisper in her ear. "Are you intimidated by me, Detective?"

Leaning her forehead to his, nose to nose, she whispered, "A little. The size of your ego alone…oof." She was on her back on the couch, 6 and a half feet of "ego" sprawled out over her. "Jackass," she breathed. "You don't fight fair." Giving him a little half smile, she brought his head to her mouth, and began kissing his forehead, then his eyes, nose, and chin. Finally, she turned his head and took his earlobe between her teeth gently. He groaned, "I don't fight fair? Please. Pleaaasse."

She laughed to herself, enjoying this newfound power over him. In a minute, the size of his ego would be the least of her concerns.

2:34 AM

Bobby's eyes opened, as they almost always did this time of night. While both he and Eames had suffered from far fewer nightmares since they had started sleeping in the same bed, his body still remembered their fear, and alerted him. With his head laid across her chest, he could feel her heartbeat in his ear. It was a beautiful sound.

Alex wakened when he tensed against her. Their new relationship was only a few days old, but their existing connection had already been strong, and continued to grow. She knew that Bobby had his own demons to fight in regard to her kidnapping, and part of her was glad that he would be coming with her to see Beth next week. It hurt her physically to think of the terror he had gone through when she was missing. Feeling him struggle to calm, she whispered, "Bobby? I'm awake."

He looked up at her, regretful that they hadn't made it through this night without this time haunting them. "Eames, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you."

She stroked his hair and kissed the top of his head. "Don't you dare apologize. You have nothing to be sorry for."

He reveled in her touch, and in the fact that her love was given so freely. Silently, he thanked whatever power that had brought her back to him, and allowed him to love her. He knew he was a lucky man; and being so, decided to push his luck. "Eames?"

"Yes?" Her hands were stroking his cheek now, enjoying the feel of rough stubble against her soft palm. Loving Bobby was like owning the world's largest, most interactive and sexy teddy bear.

"I'm glad that I'm going to therapy with you. I think it will help me, too." He hid his face from her, almost like a little boy; honest admissions were never easy for him.

She grabbed his chin and tilted it up towards her, so he could read her eyes. "Me too. I know having you there will make it easier for me. Thank you."

_Ah, just the opening I wanted. _"So, Eames, can I ask you a favor?" Just to be safe, he began stroking the outside of her thigh gently. _I need to sweeten the pot for this one, and she seemed to like that last time._

_Man, he's attentive. It's like he knew I liked that, and decided to do it to butter me up. Hey! _Eyes narrowed, she looked down at him, now wearing his patented "Who, me?" look that worked so well on unsuspecting perps. _If this favor involves handcuffs or leather, I'll just have to…well, that could be…dammit, woman, focus! _"What's the favor, Bobby?" she asked, trying hard to sound like her usual jaded and cynical self.

"T-this Sunday, w-will you come with me to visit my, um, my mom?" He hid his head again. _I really have to get him to stop doing that, especially since it brings his stubble in direct contact with my…mmm, that's nice, keep doing that, and I'll visit Nicole Wallace with you if you want. _Suddenly it occurred to her what he'd actually asked, and the raw need in his request touched her heart.

"Of course. I would really like that, Bobby. Did you think I would say no?"

"No," his reply was muffled against her chest. "I just didn't want you to feel obligated. It's not exactly a fun thing to do on a weekend." He looked up at her, searching her eyes to determine if she really meant what she said. She smiled at him. "I'll be with you, and that's enough for me. Plus, I like your mom. She gives me cookies."

He laughed. "Eames, you're a cheap date. Anybody with a cookie…OW! You goosed me!" His expression of pained astonishment almost made her lose it right then, but she kept her face serious. "Yes, yes I did. Now, **what** did you call me?" The gleam in her eyes was challenge enough for two men, but she knew he was equal to the task.

"I said that you were a thoughtful, beautiful woman with excellent taste and…ow…I am very lucky to have you."

She grinned. _Eames 1, Goren 0. Just the way I like it. _"Good answer. Now let me see if I can make you feel better, poor baby." She took his face in her hands and kissed him, feeling the sparks between them ignite once again.

He smiled to himself. _Goren 1, Eames 0. Just the way I like it._


	10. Chapter 10

11:10 AM

_It's the smell, _she decided, _that's what makes everyone uncomfortable in these places. That weird combination of disinfectant and unhappiness. Bleah._

Alex was waiting just outside Frances Goren's room, while Bobby went in to say hello and make sure his mother was having a good enough day for visitors. She liked that he was protective in this way, both of his mother and of her. On the one occasion she had seen his mom in truly bad shape, it had been deeply disturbing, mostly because of her partner's lack of surprise at being slapped and screamed at. He didn't want her to be afraid of his mother, nor did he want his mother to be embarrassed. It was a sweet way of handling the situation, but part of her still wished he was able to let her see even the bad things; _maybe now he can trust that nothing about him could make me walk away._

Her thoughts were interrupted when he poked his head out of his mother's room and beckoned her in. He was smiling; that was a good sign, right? She entered the room, brushing his hand as she passed him, and as always, was surprised and heartened at the homey ambience he had helped his mother create. She had a large bookshelf, which Alex knew Bobby worked hard at keeping well-stocked, and there were many family photos, to which Alex always felt especially drawn. She loved to look at pictures of her partner as a little boy; though he wasn't always smiling, even as a toddler he looked so Bobby it was both startling and comforting.

"Alexandra Eames, finally you come to see me again. Get over here and let me look at you." Though a relatively small woman, Bobby's mother had just as much overwhelming personality as her son. Alex went over to her bed, and eagerly leaned down to give her a hug and kiss on the cheek. "You're far too skinny, Alexandra. Have some cookies." Frances handed over a box of chocolate lace cookies Bobby had brought her on his last visit. Alex took one gratefully, then glanced over her shoulder to offer Bobby a quick wink. He grinned at her, happy to see the two most important people in his life together and enjoying each other.

Alex turned back to Frances. "You should talk about being too skinny. You need to eat a cookie too." Frances had lost a considerable amount of weight since Alex's last visit. The effects of her cancer were evident, but she was still an attractive woman, with a pair of deep brown eyes for which Alex had a special fondness. Alex was happy to see her agreeably take and eat a cookie; Bobby had told her that his mom's appetite was minimal, and had asked Alex to help him get his mom to eat. "Frances, I'm so sorry to hear you're ill." She took the older woman's hand in her own and squeezed it warmly. "Bobby tells me your treatments are going well?"

Frances smiled at her, squeezing her hand back. "I'm fine, young lady, and I'm certain we can find something much more fun to talk about than my cancer. Tell me, what have you and my son been up to lately? Is he being annoying? Do you need me to have a talk with him?"

Alex laughed. "In order, we've been working a case involving a famous historian, he's no more annoying than usual, and I'm sure that any talk you have with him will help, so yes, go right ahead. I'd like to hear that, in fact."

Bobby groaned. "The two of you aligned against me is the most frightening thing I can possibly think of. Cut it out."

His mother was quick to put him in his place. "Be quiet, Robert, we're talking about you, not with you. In fact, why don't you go bother the doctors, and let Alexandra and I have a little girl talk."

A quick nod from Alex let Bobby know she would be fine alone with his mother, and he was happy to have the chance to get an update on her condition. "Fine, I'll go, but I will be very upset if I come back and you're doing each other's hair." His mother and Eames rolled their eyes at him in unison, which, frankly, scared the hell out of him. He was out the door without another word.

Frances leaned back into her pillows, keeping a hold of Alex' hand. "So, Alexandra, you're aware that I'm dying, yes?"

Alex was taken aback at her bluntness, though Bobby's mother, even on her good days, was not what you'd call tactful. She'd already begged them for grandchildren 3 times, causing Bobby a lot of embarrassment, and forcing him to explain that Alex was just his partner. On the drive up, they'd talked about whether to say anything to his mother about their involvement, and had decided to play it by ear. Refocusing on Frances' question, Alex said honestly, "You don't know that, Frances. There are a lot of things they can do to slow down the spread of the disease."

"Pfftt, I'm dying and I know it. And I need you to do something for me, Alexandra. You must promise, and I know you wouldn't break a promise to a dying woman, now, would you?" She held Alex' hand more tightly than was comfortable, but Alex didn't want to startle her by pulling away, so soothingly she said, "Frances, I'd be happy to do you any favor you'd like. What is it you need me to promise?"

"I need you to promise that you will take care of my Robert. He is going to be very sad when I die, and he is going to be relieved too, and then he will feel very guilty, and he trusts you more than anyone else, and you must promise me that you will make sure that he is okay. Do you promise?"

Alex' eyes filled with tears. Though Frances' diatribe was a bit alarming, what she was saying about Bobby's likely reaction to her death was very accurate. Bobby's razor-sharp insight into human nature had been come by quite naturally, and this mother knew her son, despite the mental illness that made her an unpredictable and imperfect parent. Stroking Frances' hand, Alex whispered, "Of course I will. I will always take care of Bobby, you know that." She was startled when Frances leaned forward to pull her into a fierce and almost oppressive hug. "Thank you, Alexandra. I knew I could count on you."

Bobby returned to find his mother hugging Alex rather tightly, and his body tensed. He could see his mom was starting to lose touch with social niceties, which was usually the beginning of a downward swing of her disease. Fearing Alex would be hurt or afraid, he spoke loudly and firmly, "Mom, let go of my partner. I'm going to need her."

He was startled when both women turned to him, tears in their eyes. "I know, Robert, but she's promised, so everything will be all right. When they finally get me, you will have someone to take care of you and protect you, and she is a police officer, so she can help keep them away from you, too." Alex saw the disappointment in Bobby's eyes at his mother's break with reality, but she knew, too, that Frances' heart was in the right place, and she was just trying to look out for her son. She spoke softly, "Bobby, it's okay. Your mother hugs like you do; I like it, you know you're being hugged. And she was just asking me to help her with something." She gave Frances another quick hug and kiss. "I'll let you have some time alone with Bobby, Frances, and I'll be back to see you soon, okay?"

"Thank you, Alexandra. Oh, hold on, I want to give you something." From a nightstand drawer, Frances produced a small framed photograph and held it out to Alex. "This is your favorite, right, Alexandra?" It was a picture of Bobby and his mother when he was about six years old. He had decided to be Sherlock Holmes for Halloween, and was intently "investigating" the family's living room, a scowl of utter concentration on his face, while his mother looked on smiling. And Frances was right, it was Alex's favorite. She took it reverently, and, looking Frances straight in the eye, said, "I'll take good care of it. I promise."

As she exited the room, Alex reached up and stroked Bobby's face. "Take as much time as you need. I'll wait right outside." She sat down in the small waiting area, holding the picture to her chest, wiping away tears. It wasn't very long before Bobby came out, clearly distressed, and sat down beside her. He leaned his head on her shoulder, his breath coming in rasps, and she stroked his hair and kissed his forehead, mumbling words of comfort and love, wanting to make his pain go away.

**A/N - My thanks for all those who are reading, and reviewing. I am not an expert on schizophrenia, so please don't be offended if the mild symptoms here are in the wrong. Thanks.**


	11. Chapter 11

7:12 PM

Bobby sighed.

Alex sighed.

Bobby sighed again.

Alex resisted the urge to either sigh or kill Bobby.

He had been almost completely silent since leaving Carmel Ridge earlier that day. Alex knew that their visit with his mother had unsettled him, and she knew him well enough not to take his silence personally, but it was frustrating to be in the same room with him and feel that he was far away. She looked over at him, lost in his own thoughts, and still sighing. _Note to self – Alex' new life with Bobby – now with 30 percent more brooding! And 100 percent more…okay, I can live with the brooding._

She nearly jumped out of her skin when he spoke. "Eames, can I talk to you?"

_Evidence of the last several hours notwithstanding? _"Sure."

"Eames, is this a serious relationship?"

He was nonplussed by her laughter.

Reaching for his hand, she brought it to her lips and kissed his palm. "I'm sorry, Bobby, that just came out of left field. You want to know if you and I are in a serious relationship?"

"Yes, I'd like to know." He looked at her expectantly.

"Are you kidding? Did you think I was just using you for sex?"

He reddened. "No, Eames, I just mean…do we need to have the serious relationship talk?"

Now it was her turn to be nonplussed. "There's a talk?"

"So I'm told." He was dead serious.

Pulling him by the hand she still held, she settled them on the couch and turned to face him. "Okay," she said cheerfully, "talk."

"Well, um, Eames, you're the woman here."

Puzzled, she asked, "Are we establishing gender roles in this talk?"

"No, I just mean, don't you start the talk? Because y-you've done it before. You know, when you were married."

"Oh," she smiled, "well, to be totally honest, we didn't really talk about it. We kind of just played it by ear, you know?"

Bobby looked troubled. "So, I-I'm being unromantic in wanting to talk?"

She leaned over to kiss him. "No, you're just being you. So, what do you want to know? Am I serious about you? Very."

"I'm serious about you, Eames," he stated, seriously.

"Glad to hear it. Are there other specific things you'd like to talk about?"

"Yes. First of all, since you came with me to visit my mother today, do you come every week now? He seemed a little flummoxed by that.

"No, Bobby, just like before, I come when you want me to, or when she wants me to."

"Okay. Um, and then, do I come to your family things? Visits and such?"

_Mary, Joseph and the camel, he's checking off a mental list. Oookayy. _"Bobby, you always come to family things with me."

"But now I come as your b-boyfriend?" He averted his eyes at this, so she grabbed his chin to force him to look at her.

"You can come as my boyfriend, my partner, my friend; whatever you want. My family kind of predicted this, anyway." It was her turn to avert her eyes.

Bobby was taken aback by this piece of information. "Your family thought we would…um…"

"Yup. There may well be a pool, not that any of them would be dumb enough to let me find out about it."

"B-but why?"

Alex grinned. "I don't know, Bobby. You spent every night by my hospital bed, we don't spend any time apart. I guess they were just whistling in the dark here."

He smiled at her. "People see us together, in their heads, like it's a good idea?"

"I think so." She was touched at his surprise, but that was Bobby; noticing what was going on with everyone else in the world but not with himself.

"Okay, good, next question. Do we start leaving things at each other's apartments, you know, clothes and things?"

"We always did that."

"That's true." He thought about it. "Is there some sort of drawer assignment thing we're supposed to do?"

"Well, in my current apartment, there's not so much in the way of drawers, but I'm happy to clear out some room in the closet and the medicine cabinet, okay?"

"I can do that here too!" He was clearly excited about this, so much so that Alex' heart broke just a little for the part of him that needed physical evidence of their presence in each others' lives. She leaned over to kiss him, running her hand through his hair. "Thank you, Bobby, I would love that."

"Okay, Eames, this is good. Now, what if we decide to have a baby?"

_Say WHAT? How the hell did we go from medicine cabinet space to children in just a heartbeat? Okay, calm down, Alex, he's just…planning for the future, or something. Probably wants to start scoping out a temporary partner now, run a background check, do interviews…_

"Um…I hadn't gotten that far out, Bobby."

He withdrew from her, nodding to himself, like her non-answer was what he'd expected. _Dammit, he was interrogating me. Get me all mushy and then throw in the kicker. Why?_

And then she knew in a flash; this wasn't about drawer space or a joint checking account or whether those size thirteens fit in her closet. This was about his mother. This was about his fear. Alex put her head in her hands, trying to find the right thing to say, to do for him. He was pacing furiously now, glancing back at her occasionally, with a wounded look on his face. _Be careful, Alex. Be honest._

She stood, getting in the way of his pacing, forcing him to stop and look at her. Once she had captured his eyes, she spoke. "I'm not saying no, Bobby, you just took me by surprise. There are a lot of things we have to consider, and just because we've known each other as partners for so long doesn't mean we shouldn't take our time to get to know each other as a couple."

He gave her a baleful look and started to turn away. _Well, that didn't go too well. Dammit. _"Dammit, Bobby!" she shouted. "Look. At. Me." He turned back to her, doubt evident on his face..

"Robert Goren, if I ever have a baby of my own, I want it to be yours. But you can't expect me to know this minute if we're going to do that together. What if I'm too old?

"You're not too old." He sounded like a petulant child being denied dessert.

"What if you're too old?"

"Hey!"

"Hey! In case you haven't noticed, neither of us is 25 anymore, Bobby. Oh, and by the way, who will take care of the baby when we're on a case 22 hours a day? Or, God forbid, if something happens to us?"

"I-I don't know." He hung his head.

She got in his face. "Bobby, what if we have a boy and he's short? Are you worried about that?"

"Why would our son be short?" he asked, indicating himself.

"Uh, take a guess!" she answered, indicating herself.

"Well, I don't care if he's short. He's ours." Bobby defended their imaginary short son.

"Well, I don't care if he's schizophrenic. He's ours." Alex countered. "Do you see, Bobby? I'm not afraid of that, I'm afraid of the thousand other things that we have to work out before that happens, like keeping our jobs and not, you know, killing each other, but I'm NOT worried about that. He would be ours, and we would deal with it"

He stood staring at her, stunned. Sometimes he forgot that she could read him so easily, and sometimes he got so far ahead in his brain, he forgot to wait for her to catch up. Stepping to her, he put his arms around her, resting his head on top of hers.

"Okay, Eames, I get it. I'm-I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking about all that stuff. I just…got worried when you saw how my mom is. I didn't want to scare you off."

"I know, Bobby, but going from 'hey, here's your drawer' to 'I wanna be your baby daddy' may not have been the best choice in your non-scaring-me-off plan. Jackass." She leaned up to kiss him, then pushed him towards his bedroom. "Go change. You've been in those clothes all day, put on something comfortable."

He raised his hands in a gesture of defeat. "You know, Eames, I am worried about something our baby might inherit from you."

She frowned. "What's that?"

He grinned at her. "The baby could end up being a bossy, snarky, pain in the ass."

The pillow hit him directly in the back of the head, and he laughed to himself as he went off to do as he was told.

**A/N - The joint therapy session will be next, I promise, but there were some issues I knew they wouldn't discuss in front of Beth, or anyone else. :-) Thanks for continuing to read, and a special thanks to my most awesome reviewers. You guys rock.**


	12. Chapter 12

10:03 AM

They sat side by side, knees and hips touching, both sets of eyes focused on the digital clock on the desk.

10:04 AM

He leaned closer to her to whisper in her ear, "Is she normally late?"

Lost in her own thoughts, she simply shook her head, which brought her earlobe in contact with his lips. Unable to resist, he placed a small kiss there, and was debating whether licking the side of her neck would be considered a good distraction when a voice broke his reverie.

"Detectives. Sorry to keep you waiting, my last session ran a little late. Come in, won't you?" Having ushered them into her office, Beth shook Bobby's hand. "Detective Goren, it's nice to meet you. I'm Beth."

"Nice to m-meet you too, Beth. You can, uh, call me Bobby."

She smiled. "Okay, Bobby. Say, you don't happen to be from Philadelphia, do you?"

While Alex snorted at this little "joke", Bobby was simply confused. "Uh, no, I'm from New York."

He was about to ask why she thought he was from Pennsylvania, when Alex gave him her _Not now, I'll explain later _look, then proceeded to shoot Beth an annoyed glare. He decided the better part of valor (and safety) was to leave it alone.

"Ah," Beth said, earning another dirty look from Eames. "Well, why don't you both sit down?"

Having discussed seating options earlier in the day (Alex being grateful that Bobby hadn't made her provide blueprints), they took their predetermined positions; Alex on the couch, settled back with her legs crossed, Bobby in a side chair, leaning forward to look as unprepossessing as possible.

Beth was beginning to get a tingle at the back of her neck. _Something's up._ Preparing to begin the session, she looked up to witness a significant look pass between the partners. And then it began.

Looking her straight in the eye, Bobby asked, "Why did you want to see us both, Dr. Stevenson? What's your agenda?"

Startled, she answered, "I don't have an agenda. I just wanted to get to know you, Bobby, so I can understand Alex a little better."

It was Alex' turn, and she relished the chance to take Beth off balance. _Payback's a bitch, ain't it? _"No, see, if that were true, Beth, the little Philadelphia crack would have been unnecessary, now wouldn't it?" She crossed her arms and smiled, sending out her best _Whatever you say, it better be good_ glare.

Bobby, having finally gotten the joke, and having realized that whoever assigned Eames this particular therapist knew what they were doing, hopped up from his chair and began circling the room, stopping occasionally to read a book title or inspect one of Beth's diplomas. "The city of brotherly love, Doctor? That seems like a cheap shot for someone whose job is to help Eames get better, don't you think?"

Beth was dumbfounded. She wasn't sure where to look, at the large man circling her office like a shark, or the small woman sitting and waiting for her like a patient lioness. _Note to self – never commit a crime, especially one that would draw the attention of Major Case. Yikes. _She knew she needed to take back some modicum of control here, so she spoke sharply, "Perhaps it was a cheap shot, Detective Goren, but I take it personally when a patient neglects to divulge important information about her life." She shot Alex a pointed look. "It makes my job of helping that patient get better a lot harder."

Bobby intervened. "Well, since you're experienced in working with police officers, you must be aware that there are things we can't tell you, so why take it personally? Unless, of course, your purpose is not so much to help Alex as to look good by discovering information that could damage her career. Is that your ultimate goal, Doctor? To impress the higher ups at NYPD, get more referrals? And by the way, who precisely referred Alex to you in the first place?"

Alex almost felt sorry for Beth. She looked entirely befuddled, unsure of which question to answer first.

Beth was busily processing the situation. _Good job on regaining control. Time to try a different tactic. _"Detective Goren, I will be happy to answer your questions. Now SIT DOWN."

Taken aback, Bobby headed for his original chair. "No, not there, Detective. Sit on the couch, next to Alex, please." Unsure of where this was going, Bobby decided to play along, for now, and took his place near to, but not touching, Eames.

"First of all, my one and only agenda is to help Alex, so any nefarious motives you're assigning to me are bullshit." Alex raised an eyebrow at Bobby, then both looked back to Beth, game faces firmly intact. "Secondly, I have no intention of keeping a record of today's session. Do you see me taking notes?"

"No," Bobby answered, "which doesn't mean you won't the minute we leave."

"I suppose that's possible, but it's not the way I operate. I do have years of experience in dealing with the NYPD, and so, I tell them what they need to know, and nothing more. An officer's personal life is not something I feel they need to know. And just so you're aware, Alex wasn't referred to me by any current NYPD employee, but by your former captain, James Deakins."

Now this was information to take both Alex and Bobby off balance, though it made sense to Bobby once he thought about it. Ross didn't know Alex well enough to make this appropriate a match, and Deakins had been quite adamant with Bobby when they met at the hospital. He had made Bobby promise that he would support Alex while she was attending the required therapy, and his respect for the captain made him look at Beth with a new perspective. He turned to Alex, explaining "That actually makes sense, Eames. Captain…Jimmy told me that your therapy would be important. I guess he called Ross to recommend her."

Alex narrowed her eyes. "So, you, Deakins and Ross decided to make decisions for me without discussing it with me? That's great, Bobby. Let's all take care of the damsel in distress. Are you reporting to them?"

"No, Eames, don't be so damned suspicious. I just put this together now too." Her accusation hit a little too close to the big blowout from just a few weeks earlier, and he had no intention of getting back into this topic with her. Beth, on the other hand, had a very different opinion.

"Alex," she started gently, "don't let Bobby tell you how you're allowed to feel. If you want to be angry about this, go right on ahead." She shivered a bit when she felt the heat of Bobby's anger at her from his glare, but while she wanted to hear from him, Alex was her patient, and encouraging her to bury or mask her feelings was a dangerous proposition.

Alex, having calmed herself a bit by taking deep breaths and remembering the deal she'd made with Bobby about his protectiveness, said, "No, Beth, Bobby's right about this. I'm not really angry at him, or Ross or Deakins either. I'm angry at the necessary changes in my life since I was kidnapped, which includes having to go to therapy at all."

"I know," Beth stated simply. "And that's a very natural and healthy response. What happened to you should make you angry, and you have every right to express it however you choose to. Those of us around you will just have to deal with it." This last statement was punctuated by a very pointed look in Bobby's direction. He turned to look at Eames, stunned into laughter when he realized she was sticking her tongue out at him.

"So there," she said, clearly delighted in having someone help her give Bobby a hard time. What fun was loving him, after all, if she wasn't allowed to give him just a little bit of grief? _I'll make it up to him later. _The way he had stared at her tongue, and the way he was smiling knowingly at her now made her think he had similar…ideas. In that moment, promises were made and strategies born.

Beth watched this little non-verbal exchange, pleased to see that the anger of the last several minutes, both that directed at her by them, and that directed at each other, had seemed to dissipate. She would have been lying if she said this wasn't one of the more interesting sessions she'd ever conducted, or, more truthfully, had conducted upon her, but it was time to get to the point, and get all three of them on the same track.

"So," she said, loudly enough to interrupt the clearly intimate moment, "can we agree that I am not out to get you?"

Two heads nodded in unison.

"Then let's get down to business."

**A/N - This will be continued in the next chapter, and quickly, I promise. This much dialogue is a bit of overkill for one chapter, so I decided to break it up. My eternal gratitude for everyone who continued to read, and review. Thank you.**


	13. Chapter 13

"Then let's get down to business," Beth stated, hoping the two detectives were finished interrogating her and ready to move on. "Bobby, why don't you tell me how Alex' kidnapping has affected you?"

Like a deer in the headlights, Bobby looked up to meet her steady gaze. Beth watched as fear, resignation, and finally determination danced across his dark eyes. She was intrigued to see similar emotions from Alex. _They're so much in sync it's almost disturbing._

Bobby's voice was hushed, but firm. "At first, the rush of adrenaline was nearly overwhelming. I was trying to run and to yell as loudly as I could, but it felt as if I were moving and speaking through molasses. Ross was the one who gave everyone Eames' address, because I couldn't say it loudly enough." He paused to take a few breaths and calm himself, as memories of that awful morning rushed at him in a wave.

"I'm sorry," whispered Alex in the smallest voice he'd ever heard her use. "So sorry."

Shutting out everything else, Bobby turned his full attention to his partner. "Why are you sorry?"

"I'm sorry for what you went through."

Bobby snorted, a habit he could only have acquired from one person. "Don't you dare be sorry, Eames. What I sent through was nothing compared to what you suffered because of me."

Beth, who had been watching this exchange with fascination, interrupted. "Why because of you, Bobby?"

Still focusing on Alex, he said, "Because Jo Gage was so furious with me for stealing her father's attention, she took Eames to divert mine. She also framed her father, which distracted me for too long. If Eames weren't my partner, Jo would never have taken her."

"That's true," Beth agreed, earning a nasty look from Alex. "But I'm also sure that there are many good things that have happened to Alex because you two are partners. Isn't that true, Alex?"

Eames nodded. "A lot of things, including the fact that I knew enough not to scream, which, along with your phone call, probably saved my life." she said pointedly.

"Which doesn't really make you feel any better, does it, Bobby?" Beth asked.

He shook his head no.

"What does make you feel better?"

"Looking at her, knowing she's okay. Remembering how brave and resourceful she was, finding a way out. Just…being with her, looking at her."

Alex started to respond, but Beth stopped her with an upraised hand. "What makes you feel worse, Bobby?"

"Um…I can't, uh, I don't want to ever have to open the trunk of a car again." He looked down, fighting back tears.

Suddenly, Eames' arms were around him, and she was kissing his cheek and rubbing his back. He held her for all he was worth, having known, but not said, that this was what made him feel best of all.

Deciding not to comment on their current physical positions, Beth simply asked, "Did you think it was Alex in that trunk, Bobby? Did you think she was dead?"

Gently dislodging himself from Eames, Bobby stood and ran his hand through his hair, beginning to pace. "I didn't know what to think. I thought I would know somehow, if she was, uh, g-gone, but all the evidence said she-she was."

Alex, who had only heard this part of the story from Ross, who was considerably more clinical about it, was more than a little troubled to know that, even briefly, Bobby had thought she was dead. She always assumed that his Eamesian "spidey sense" had kept his belief alive. _He must have been so…_ She couldn't even think of the appropriate word for what he would have been feeling at that moment. Quietly, she asked, "Bobby, why did you insist on opening that trunk yourself?"

He looked down at her, sorrow written on his features. "You know what she did to the other v-victims, Eames. I didn't want anybody else to see you like that. And I knew I couldn't believe y-you were…unless I saw it for myself."

Beth interjected, "Why can't you say the word, Bobby?"

His fury, which had been rumbling under the surface like an approaching thunderstorm, burst forth in a rush. I WON'T say that, Beth. Don't ask me to."

In the face of all that emotion, Beth kept her voice as calm and even as possible. "Okay. You don't have to say it, not today. Let's move on. What was it like for you when Alex was found?"

He resumed his pacing. "I was so relieved I almost passed out. I wanted to go to the – to where she was, but Ross wouldn't let me. He was afraid I would get in the way of the rescue team and the EMTs."

"No, he wasn't," Alex spoke up.

Taken aback, Bobby turned to look at her. "What do you mean?"

She smiled, which seemed incongruous to him, but felt like a warm ray of sunshine in the darkness of the moment. "He was afraid that you would destroy evidence by breaking down the door, or hijack a bulldozer and break the walls down."

Understanding, he smiled back. "I would have."

She met his eyes, her own shining fiercely. "I know."

Moments passed as they spoke to one another silently. Though loath to interrupt, Beth knew time was running short, and she had one more issue she wanted to bring up before they left. She cleared her throat, and then continued, "I have a question for both of you. If this incident hadn't happened, would you still have…let's say crossed the line?"

Still looking only at each other, they answered simultaneously. "Yes."

Speaking for them both, as she usually did when things got emotional, Alex continued, "It just…pushed the fast forward button a little. I think we both realized that all the time we thought we still had was an illusion."

Turning to Beth, Bobby nodded. "What she said."

Beth laughed. "Clearly she's got you pretty well trained already." Alex snorted at that thought, but Bobby was grinning. "I just do what I'm told, Beth."

Alex' eyebrows shot up in disbelief. "I can't believe you pick the notes-free, record-free shrink session to throw that one out there. Where's a tape recorder when I need it?"

"Whatever you say, Eames."

"Cut that out now; it's annoying."

"Yes, ma'am."

"Robert…"

"Alexandra…"

If Beth hadn't known better, she'd have thought they were on the verge of coming to blows. Only the matching mischievous glints in their eyes gave them away. "Okay, kids, stop fighting. You both did very well today, and this was helpful to me. Now, I need to see Alex on her own at least once more, but if you're interested, we can schedule another session for the two of you together.

Alex, concerned that Bobby would feel unduly pressured to agree, jumped in. "What don't we discuss it and call you?"

"That's fine. Bobby, it was very nice to meet you, and I know why Alex thinks so highly of you. I hope I see you again."

Bobby smiled at her. "Thank you. Eames thinks very well of you also, and I agree."

Beth politely showed him out the door, then put a hand on Alex' shoulder to halt her exit for a moment. Leaning in close, Beth whispered, "Yowza."

With not a little pride, Alex whispered back. "You don't know the half of it." She moved forward to take Bobby's hand, and they walked out together.

**A/N – Wow, dialogue is way harder than I thought. Thanks for continuing to read and review; I feel like I know where I'm going to end up with this, but there's still a bit more to go to get there. **


	14. Chapter 14

9:29 PM

She danced around a little, enjoying the end of the Sister Sledge classic while finishing her dusting. _Best of Soul 70's – no better cleaning music than this, really. After all, what's the point of cleaning if you can't shake your booty a little when you do it? _

Fun though it was, especially the shakin o'the booty, she was grateful to be almost done. As the next song came on, she realized it was not one of her favorites and decided to vacuum. _Don't wanna miss any of the good stuff; plus, it's getting late. The last thing I need is to deal with aggravated downstairs neighbors._

She was just getting started when she felt a strong pair of arms grab her from behind. Startled, she jumped and yelled. _There goes the good will of the neighbors._ She turned to find a very chastened Bobby.

"Eames, I'm sorry I scared you. You just looked so…"

Shutting off the vacuum, she crossed her arms and gave him her best inscrutable face. "Go ahead, Goren. Say cute and see how far it gets you."

He decided to try and mitigate his error, seeing as how he valued his life and all. _Notes to self: 1. Never grab Eames without permission 2. Never even think the word cute in her presence. She knows. _

"I had no intention of referring to you as cute. Hot, sexy, grabbable. Those were the adjectives that I was thinking, Eames." He tried to sound both insulted and sexy, in the hopes of throwing her off the cute trail. Smiling, he took the vacuum from her and put it away. "I'll vacuum in the morning, okay? The next one's a good one." He gave her a come-hither look. "Dance with me."

"Bobby, there's barely room to walk in here, much less dance."

In a moment, he had the coffee table and his chair pushed into the kitchen. She smiled to herself. _Never let it be said the man's not stubborn and resourceful. _He was in front of her, pulling her into his arms, just in time for the next song to begin.

Do you remember the 21st night of September?  
Love was changing the mind of pretenders  
While chasing the clouds away

He started off slowly, a simple two step, keeping her held close to his body. Alex had always been impressed with Bobby's skills on the dance floor, especially for such a large man. You'd think any dance partner would be concerned about losing toes to those big feet, but his grace made that worry irrelevant. Dancing with Bobby was simply fun, and boy did she want to have some fun.

Our hearts were ringing  
In the key that our souls were singing.  
As we danced in the night,  
Remember,  
how the stars stole the night away,  
yeah yeah yeah.

As the intensity of the music increased, so too did their tempo. It was nice to simply relax and let Bobby lead, laughing along with her as he spun her around. She was nearly dizzy, and a little out of breath.

Ba de ya - say do you remember  
Ba de ya - dancing in September  
Ba de ya - never was a cloudy day

By the time they got to the ba duda part of the song, she was laughing too hard to continue. She fell to the futon, grabbing his tie to bring him down with her. It was an awkward fit for him, but he was too busy smiling at her to notice.

"I should be angry at you, you know, Eames," he said, removing his now-loosened tie and jacket, tossing them on the floor.

Still laughing, she was a bit confused by both his careless actions with his clothes, and this statement. "Why?" He was still smiling, so she figured she couldn't be in it too deep.

"Leaving me alone with that woman. 'Call me if you need a ride'. And that shit-eating grin on your face. That was cruel, Eames. Really cruel."

_Ruh-roh. He has that look in his eyes. Okay, the best defense is a good offense, right? _She made her voice all honeyed sweetness and sympathy. "Oh, poor Bobby. Did the scary lady hurt poor little defenseless you?"

"No actually, she wasn't as bad as I expected. But this isn't really about her, Alexandra. This is about you abandoning your partner in his hour of need. That was not very nice of you." He was now unbuttoning his shirt, making Alex swallow in anticipation, and just a little bit of fear. "I think you should either apologize, or accept your punishment."

She raised one eyebrow. "I think you should kiss my ass, Goren."

"Maybe later." He wiggled his eyebrows at her.

She laughed. "Well, since I have no intention of apologizing, what, precisely, do you intend to do to 'punish' me?"

He grinned, tossing his now unbuttoned shirt to the floor. Suddenly, he was upon her, doing the thing she most hated in the world, enraging her even as she laughed.

"Robert..ha..Goren..you..better..stop..ha..before I..ha..get really..ha..mad."

"Not until you apologize."

She resisted the temptation to knee him in the groin. He knew how much she hated it when he did this to her. _Escape now, kill later. _"Bobby, ha..stop..tickling me..ha.. right..this..ha..minute!"

He stopped, but just long enough to meet her eyes. "Are you sorry you left me in that woman's clutches, Eames?" He feinted as if to tickle her again, and she fought back with her best weapon, well, next to her mind, anyway. She kissed him, long and hard, and felt him let go of her arms, which he had pinned to her sides. Though the idea of pushing him off of her was alluring, he was now using his second best weapon. He was kissing her back, and those tickling hands were now…doing something else.

They pulled back a little, both now completely out of breath. "Truce?" she gasped. "Truce," he agreed, "though you really don't fight fair, Eames." She removed her tongue from his ear long enough to say, "I'm sorry," then went right back to her task.

_Gotta let him win one every once in a while. _

**A/N – I was going through fluff withdrawal syndrome, and this is the result. The song is Earth, Wind & Fire's "September", and it is my opinion that anyone not inspired by it to immediately shake what their mama gave them needs help. Okay, I can't seem to link the video, but you can do a search for it. Trust me, the costumes alone are worth the effort. Thanks for reading and reviewing!**


	15. Chapter 15

12:40 PM

As DAM wended her way through the usual irksome traffic on the eastbound LIE, her ever-attentive mother coddling her in and out of tight spots to maximize her speed, Bobby resolved to be on his best behavior today. It was his first foray into the arms of the Eames family since becoming their youngest daughter's lover, and at the moment, said daughter was too busy alternating between cursing at other drivers and sweetly encouraging her "baby" to pay any attention to his discomfort, either emotional or physical. Even with the passenger seat pushed back as far as it would go, DAM was, as always for him, a snug fit. He chuckled inwardly at that memory, knowing that Eames would likely not appreciate the joke in her current mood.

Being one of the youngest and by far the smallest of the five rambunctious Eames siblings had led to Alex being regularly and cheerfully tortured. Bobby had long ago surmised that this formative experience had motivated Eames' use of the force of her personality to overcome any assumptions based on her petite and delicate frame. He had witnessed large and imposing men, himself included, step back on a single glare. Eames made it quite clear that scary things, too, can come in small packages.

Still, decades of experience with her loving but volatile family inspired her to treat each visit like a battle; he could almost feel her checking and loading her significant mental weapons as they drove. He knew that in his own way, he was doing the same; there was particular reason for concern this visit, as they intended to "spill the beans" about their personal relationship. While Bobby knew that the Eames family at large would be happy, he also knew that they were in for some teasing.

Okay, a lot of teasing.

Okay, a lot of teasing from Eames' family, who, while none were quite as sharp as their "baby girl," still packed quite a verbal wallop, especially en masse. Sarcasm and dry wit were staples in their family dynamic, and one good zinger seemed to stimulate a barrage of others. Usually Bobby enjoyed the rapid-fire wiseass repartee, but he had never been on the receiving end before. He swallowed hard, wondering if sardonic torment would be the price he paid for loving Alexandra Eames.

Alexandra Eames herself, meanwhile, was considerably less concerned with any comments that might be directed at Bobby; she had made it clear from the first time he'd met her family that she alone was permitted to tease him. Mostly this was because she knew his boundaries; Bobby was a lot more sensitive than people realized, and she never wanted his feelings to be hurt. There was also the element of fear that the high-energy mockery would drive him away; even at nearly forty, her brothers could still embarrass her. She hoped they didn't try any cockamamie half-assed "Eames Boys" plans today. In her waking nightmares, she envisioned them cornering Goren and asking him his intentions. Just thinking of it made her snort in derision.

She felt a hand on her knee.

"You okay there, Eames?"

Distracted, she nodded, pondering whether she ought to warn him about what he might expect at the day's festivities. Deciding to play it safe, she said, "Listen, Bobby, if anyone in my family starts asking questions about our future plans, refer them to me. You are a grown man, and I am a grown woman, and we shouldn't have to explain ourselves to that motley crew."

Smiling, he said, "No way, Eames. They ask, I'm answering."

"No, see, Bobby, that will just play into their hands, and we do not want to do that." Glancing over, she realized he was wearing a shit-eating grin. Puzzled, she asked, "Okay, what's your answer?"

"My answer is that my future is with you for the rest of my life, and if you dare to disagree with that plan, I'll just club you over the head and drag you back to my cave." He smiled benevolently at her, ignoring the telltale redness at the tips of her ears, which usually indicated somebody was about to get hurt.

"You. Wouldn't. DARE. My brothers would LOVE that shit, and I'd never hear the end of it." Lowering her voice, she intoned, "Hey, Alex, finally found the guy who can take you on, uh?"

Bobby happily said, "I know. I'll be so popular for finally taming you, they'll be ready to adopt me and boot you out of the family if you argue. It's perfect. Mike helped me come up with it."

Later he would realize that this moment was the most danger his life had been in for a long time. The redness turned to purple, and a small hand left the gearshift long enough to inflict a nasty pinch of his inner thigh. "Robert O. Goren, the day you start asking Mike Logan romantic advice is the day you cease to have a romance! What the hell were you thinking? Logan's just like my brothers!"

"I know! That's why he was a great person to talk to! And I didn't ask him for romantic advice; just for advice as to how to deal with your brothers."

"And it didn't occur to you that while you have to deal with my brothers for one night, you have to deal with ME every night? Think about it for a minute, Goren. Who are you more afraid of?" She smirked, knowing the answer.

"Eames?"

"Yes, Bobby?" she said sweetly, certain a mea culpa was forthcoming.

"Gotcha." He leaned over and kissed her cheek, then wisely got his face out of the danger zone, surreptitiously crossing his legs away from her, in case she decided to damage any other parts of him. He was grateful they had already pulled off the highway and into her father's neighborhood; she didn't have enough time to do anything permanent.

To his surprise, after sputtering in anger and confusion for just a moment, she burst out laughing. He flinched when he saw her hand coming in his direction, then relaxed when she simply stroked his cheek. "You're going to fit in just fine, Bobby. That was so evil it was almost Eamesian. I'm rubbing off on you! Back on topic, though, feel free to ignore any attempted interrogation by my father, brothers, sister, or sundry in-laws. Our business is our own."

"Oh, no, I was serious about that part. If they ask, I will tell them that our future is together, in whatever form it takes. I'm in love with you, you're my best friend, and you will have a hard time if you ever try to get rid of me." He watched her, hoping this answer would be acceptable, at least in her eyes.

For a moment, Alex found it hard to speak. It was so like Bobby to come up with the answer that was right, both for her and her family. She was moved by knowing that he had probably worked on it; it proved to her once again how much he truly loved and cared about her. She smoothly pulled DAM to the curb, unlatched her seatbelt, and leaned over to him, kissing him for all she was worth.

When she was able to form a coherent sentence, she spoke with a voice choked with tears, "I will never try to get rid of you, Bobby. It would kill me. I'm so in love with you it scares me, but not enough to run. Our future IS together."

A bit taken aback at this display of open emotion from his usually restrained Eames, Bobby could only smile at her in response.

It was enough.

As she pulled back onto the road, mere minutes from her dad's place, she glanced over at him, "You ready for this, Goren?"

"We'll handle it together, Eames."

**A/N – Hey there! Sorry it's been so long since an update, but I'm back on the horse now, so they should be more frequent. By the way, this story is now parting ways with the canon of Season 6; it's explained in detail in the note for my M-rated story "War Wounds," but suffice it to say I'm digging my heels in and keeping this flufferific. Thanks for continuing to read!**


	16. Chapter 16

Daniel John Eames looked around at the chaos and smiled. Though only 4 of his 5 were currently present, "Baby Girl" was due any moment along with her partner, an event that was sure to increase both the volume and intensity of the maelstrom. Pool betting had been suspended when Alex made an offhand comment to her sister Colleen, leading the family to suspect someone was already a winner.

Tonight, the family had every intention of finding out for sure.

Daniel was fairly certain he stood a good chance of winning, and knew his youngest daughter would clam up and probably leave early were she to feel unduly pressured. So, he had added to the existing "Goren rules" for today.

They were as follows:

Only Alex was permitted to smartass Goren. A momentary lapse on the part of youngest son Sean last Christmas Eve (he had foolishly made a Sasquatch remark), had led to a groin injury neither Sean nor any of the Eames men was likely to forget.

References to Alex as Baby Girl were to be kept to an absolute minimum. As patriarch, Daniel himself was exempt from this rule, but while Goren knew about the nickname, Alex didn't like for it to be bandied about in his presence. Occasionally eldest son Matthew would forget, and those times were…unpleasant. Rule 2 also applied to Runt of the Litter and Mom's Little Throwback, as naturally it would.

Height and weight disparity jokes were also verboten. (see above RE Sasquatch, Baby Girl). Alex never enjoyed being reminded of her size, and the incident when middle son Daniel Jr. (aka DJ, aka Jan Brady, to his great dismay) had hummed the theme from _The Odd Couple _upon Alex and Bobby's arrival had led to the immediate institution of this very rule.

Physical abuse towards Alex was strictly "at your own risk" in Goren's presence. This included but was not limited to: hair ruffling, noogies, picking her up and carrying her around, and head slaps. This particular rule had been self-created the evening the family saw Bobby's face when Alex yelped in pain after being pinched by DJ. While Daniel, all of his sons, and his eldest daughter could be accurately referred to as tall, none was a match for Alex' partner, and having seen the look in his eyes that night, none were rushing to take him on. It was widely noted and remarked upon, however, that Alex had managed to calm Goren down with a few soft words and a touch on the hand. Come to think of it, that may have been the night the pool got started.

Alex and by extension Bobby were given first rights at time alone with, dinner seating adjacency to, and bedtime storytelling with Christopher. This rule had been created by Colleen and her husband Peter, and was inviolable.

These rules could, of course, be added to, changed, or amended at any time, without written notice. Hence, Daniel had added the following for today:

Alex and Bobby are not to be harassed, questioned, interrogated, or otherwise bothered in regard to their suspected but not yet confirmed personal relationship. Daniel, and only Daniel, would pry for details at his discretion, and would share information with the family on an as-needed basis. There had been some protest that perhaps Dad would ensure that the information he shared reflected him as the pool's winner, but Daniel had put an end to that nonsense with his patented Eames glare, Version 5: I am your father; I gave you life, and I can and will take it away unless you ZIP IT.

So now it was just a waiting game; waiting for the arrival of Alex, Bobby, and the much-lauded DAM, waiting to investigate, find and interpret evidence, and act accordingly.

Daniel smiled again. This was going to be a fun day.

**A/N – Okay, this was just a short set-up chapter to know who the players are once the true craziness of Bobby and Alex at the Eames' begins. Thanks for continuing to read and review! Up next – the arrival of our heroes.**


	17. Chapter 17

"Woo-hoo. Now that is a thing of beauty," intoned Sean. "Damn."

"Precisely." Alex said evenly, with just a hint of superiority in her tone. "Isn't that right, baby?" she cooed, stroking the hood.

Bobby rolled his eyes. He had accepted the fact that Eames was having a steamy love affair with her car, but he didn't have to like it. Distracted by a random thought that the car was female and that meant…, he almost missed DJ's question.

"You got this for her?"

Bobby nodded his assent.

"Man, Alex, what did you have to do to get this mean machine?" DJ waggled his eyebrows suggestively, earning a collective glare from Alex, Bobby, AND his father; the trifecta of impending doom.

It was Bobby who reacted first. "Listen, Jan, your sister doesn't have to do anything; she deserves the best just for being her, and for putting up with me. And since she's been taking your shit for a lot longer, I suggest you start thinking about what you're going to get her to make it up to her."

Said sister was too busy doubled over in laughter to be of help on either side, but big brother Matthew filled the void.

"Oh, snap, Jan, you got the smackdown from Goren! He never lowers himself to toy with the likes of you. A round of applause, ladies and gentlemen!"

As Eames' family cheered him, Bobby grinned. _Maybe I can do this after all._

DJ, having been properly put in his place, sidled up to him cautiously. "I can't believe you did that, man." He attempted to look wounded and innocent, but was less than successful. Bobby glared down at him. "I can't believe you even suggested your sister is anything less than honorable. I guess you won't be doing that again."

Knowing he was defeated, DJ slunk away, muttering, "And don't call me Jan."

Chuckling as he watched this departure, Bobby was again grateful that Alex' new car had given them something of an icebreaker. He felt more comfortable in his skin now, and her proud smile gave him the courage to face the task at hand. As everyone headed into the house, it occurred to him that no one had dared even ask to drive DAM; he supposed the Eames family liked all their body parts right where they were. He had attempted to swipe the keys on one memorable occasion, just to tease her, but it had been…a misstep on his part. He winced at the memory, but smiled when she appeared at his elbow, gently propelling him towards the house.

"Come on, Bobby. Let's face the music. Oh, by the way, I have an idea about how to do this, so just follow my lead, okay?"

Leaning down, he whispered in her ear, "Anywhere, Eames."

As they entered the house, Christopher, who had stayed inside with his mother, ran at Alex at a breakneck pace. Just as he reached her, he jumped up, launching himself into her arms like a towheaded missile. Practiced at this greeting, Alex steadied herself, gracefully catching him with a laughing "oomph" of effort. Christopher wriggled in delight, squealing, "Auntie Alex is here!" and bestowing enthusiastic, if messy, kisses all over her face.

"Christopher Pooh, what are you eating?" Alex asked, licking her lips.

"Yo-bird," he answered seriously.

"Yum," she laughed, winking at Bobby.

Following her eyes, Christopher yelped, and aimed himself from her arms to Bobby's. "Uncle Big Bob!" he exclaimed, causing muffled laughter throughout the room. When he had begun talking, his Auntie Alex had taught him this particular nickname for her partner, to said partner's chagrin, but the great amusement of everyone else who heard it. Hugging Christopher, Bobby furrowed his brow over the toddler's shoulder at a laughing Alex, which served only to make her laugh harder.

Colleen, still holding the yogurt she'd been attempting to feed her son, asked, "Christopher? Are you going to eat the rest of this, sweetie?'

Torn between indulging his hunger or his desire to play with his favorite aunt and "uncle", Christopher pouted. Alex stepped in quickly, saying "I'll feed it to him, Colleen. Come on, kid, into the kitchen with you." Bobby gently placed the 3-year-old on the floor, smiling as he chased after his aunt.

Alex' Dad indicated the chair next to him, and Bobby sat down, happy to be included in this family, bizarre though they could be. The first few times Eames had brought him here, she'd never left his side, knowing that he found the situation unfamiliar and a bit intimidating, but now he was comfortable enough to deal with the madding crowd on his own, which he considered quite the accomplishment. Turning to her father, he asked, "How've you been, John…um, Danny?"

Laughing, her Dad said, "One day I'll break you of that habit, son. John was my cop name, to keep from confusing me with my father. Danny is what my family calls me."

"I know," Bobby said sheepishly, "but you're still referred to as John or Johnny on the force; and I forget to switch. So, how are you?"

Shooting a look at his children and their spouses, who had somehow all managed to move just a bit closer to listen to this conversation, Daniel said, "Oh, I'm fine, son. Retirement is just as exciting as you expect. But I want to hear about you and my daughter." Inwardly, he laughed, noting the sheer panic that marked Goren's face for just a moment. _Heh. Take that, Detective. _"Has work been busy? A lot of cases?"

Bobby nearly passed out from relief. _I may have overestimated my ability to deal with these people. That was definitely intentional. _"Yeah, Danny, it's been a busy fall." He lowered his voice. "But she's doing better every day, so I don't care how many hours we have to work as long as that's still true."

_Nice deflection, son. _Daniel looked up as Alex returned, Christopher on her hip. Kissing his forehead, she put him down, and he ran to the basement to work off his sugar high with his cousins. Deciding that it was now or never, Alex walked over to Bobby's chair, and sat down on his lap. A little taken aback, Bobby soon realized the nature of her plan, and put his arms around her waist to hold her steady. She wrapped an arm around his neck and kissed his cheek.

While they were settling themselves, silence had fallen over the room. Alex took advantage of this rare event to loudly ask, "Okay, which one of you bozos wins the pool?"

"P-pool? What pool?" Sean made an effort to appear shocked at such an accusation from his sister. He shouldn't have bothered. Within a moment, all his siblings and their spouses, along with his father, were loudly debating the results of the 'non-existent' pool. Bobby turned his face into Alex' shoulder, trying to control his laughter. Boy, did she know her family well. He should be embarrassed that his love life was the subject of both debate and illegal gambling, but the woman on his lap was nothing to feel bad about, and he knew it. She quickly tired of the noise, though, and put her pinkies in her mouth to deliver a piercing whistle. As the din quieted a bit, she turned to her father.

"Is it date-dependent?"

"Yes. Not initially, but since he practically lived in your hospital room, we switched over."

"So, what is it worth to the winner for us to give accurate information?"

Daniel pondered this. Perhaps something could be worked out. As head of the family, it was his job, not to mention his pleasure, to handle these situations. Turning to his children, he said, "Okay, we should agree that whoever wins splits the proceeds with Alex and Bobby, yes?" When he was greeted with a reluctant silence, he spoke more loudly. "YES?"

A grumbling assent from the room sealed the deal. Turning to his youngest, he said, "Let's hear it." He rethought that; she was still his daughter. "Just the date, Alexandra, no gory details. Save that for your sister, please."

Grinning at her father's remarks, Alex said. "Okay, Dad, but I was **so** looking forward to discussing it with you. And it's October 30th, by the way."

From across the room, Colleen and Peter yelled "YES!" They then proceeded to do a little victory dance, involving elements of both a do-si-do and the Cabbage Patch. It was a little sad, actually, but the rest of the family was too busy either cracking up (Alex, Bobby and Daniel) or muttering bitterly about their loss (everyone else) to notice.

Placing her hand out, palm up, Alex asked, "So how much do I get?"

"Not a damn thing," grinned her Dad, "unless the actual winners of the pool agree to share with you."

Colleen and Peter stopped their attempts at the Running Man short at this. "Dad! We had Halloween – we won!" pouted Colleen.

"Ah, no, lassie, someone else had October 30th right on the nose," Daniel said. "Bring me the phone and we'll find out if they're willing to share."

Smugly, he took the phone from DJ and dialed, then smiled when the other party answered. "Jimmy? Have I got something to tell you and Angie…"

Alex and Bobby stared at each other. _Oh, shit._

To Be Continued…

**A/N – Heh. Take that, Super Detectives. Thanks to my readers and reviewers, and to those of you who mentioned that the show actually named Eames' Dad as John, I hope I fixed it above. Special Disclaimer: Any similarity to my own family, in either personality or name (ahem…Daniel was my father's name, so…) is not at all coincidental. And them I do own, and they know it, so there.**


	18. Chapter 18

"Jimmy? Have I got something to tell you and Angie…"

Alex and Bobby stared at each other. _Oh, shit._

Daniel spent a few minutes chatting with his old friend Jimmy Deakins, aware of, but ignoring, the chaos he'd caused with this phone call.

Colleen and Peter were sulking in a corner, their victory dancing mercifully having ceased.

Matthew and his wife Margaret were commiserating quietly with Sean and his wife Judy.

DJ, who aside from Alex was the only single sibling, was bouncing around impatiently, wise enough not to make noise while his father was still on the phone.

And Alex and Bobby were…well, he could only see Alex' face, her mouth a little round O of surprise and dismay. Bobby's face was hidden behind her, and he appeared to be mumbling into her hair, which she seemed to be ignoring.

Finally hanging up and feeling quite pleased with himself for having pulled off this little coup, Daniel was startled when DJ virtually exploded in a fit of immaturity.

Pointing at Alex, he sing-songed, "You're in trouble, you're gonna get it." He then walked over to her, turned around, and shook his booty right in her face, which, while incredibly strange, at least served to break her reverie, and drew Goren out from behind her far enough that one of his glaring eyes could be seen.

Before Alex could recover enough to speak, Judy did. "Mary, mother of God, DJ, hasn't Alex been traumatized enough? You gotta show her that nastiness, too?"

This drew a few chuckles from around the room, serving only to further fuel DJ's tantrum. He had been humiliated enough today; it was someone else's turn, and he knew which two someones he was choosing for the honor.

"Baby Girl got caught by the Captain! Hah!" DJ was on the verge of his own victory dance when his father spoke in a stern voice.

"Daniel John Eames, Jr., ENOUGH! Back off, cool down, and shut up!"

Daniel had everyone's rapt attention, and their silence, with that little outburst. In the Eames family, there was no greater sign of impending parental smackdown than the use of one's full name.

DJ backed off and shut up; the cooling down would take a little longer.

Turning to Alex and Bobby, Daniel said softly, "Jimmy's not your captain anymore, and he probably wouldn't care even if he were. He wanted me to tell you, and I quote, 'I'm happy for them, and it's about time.' So you don't need to worry on account of him knowing."

Bobby's face still half-hidden in her hair, Alex answered seriously, "We're not worried about the Cap..Jimmy knowing, Dad. It's just that if he knew, and you guys knew, who else does? Word travels fast on the force, you know that; and we haven't quite figured out how to handle this in respect to our jobs." Bobby nodded his agreement, but before the conversation could continue, a sudden and rapidly increasing noise interrupted.

"Oh, no," Margaret laughed, "Approaches the thundering herd."

Just as she spoke the words, the various Eames grandchildren made their entrance, noisily begging for sustenance. 12-year-old Katie carried Christopher, with Ryan, Susie, Matthew, Jr., and Patti hot on their heels.

As the rest of the adults took the kids into the kitchen to begin curing their mass starvation, Daniel leaned over to Bobby and Alex, "Come on and eat. Every problem seems easier to handle with a full stomach."

Deciding by an exchange of looks that this idea had merit, Bobby and Alex followed Daniel to join the family.

Mealtime at the Eames household was, as always, an upbeat, loud, and somewhat messy affair. Kids were stealing food off your plate while happily "sharing" with you anything vaguely resembling a vegetable; everyone seemed to be talking at once, and managing to consume mass amounts of food at the same time. Bobby usually enjoyed the energy, but today he had a lot going on in his head, so much so that he failed to notice when Christopher gave Alex a sizable love bite on the arm. Only her pained squeal drew him from his thoughts.

"Christopher Alexander O'Hara, NO BITING. You say you're sorry right now." Colleen spoke harshly, causing her son's big hazel eyes to widen in shock, then fill with tears.

Under the table, Bobby put a hand on Alex' knee, aware that while she had instantly forgiven her nephew, she wouldn't and couldn't interfere in his mother's disciplining him. He knew moments like this were especially hard for her, and he wanted her to know he understood.

Both Christopher and Alex were on the verge of a meltdown when DJ stepped in. Seated on the other side of his nephew, he took the boy's arm in his mouth and bit down just a little, causing Christopher to look over at his uncle in shock. "Hey, Pooh, don't you bite my little sister, or I'll bite YOU!" While he wasn't hurt, apparently the thought of getting bitten back hadn't yet occurred to the toddler, who immediately leaned over and kissed Alex' arm where he'd bit it, saying a sweet "Sorry, Auntie Alex."

Both Alex and Colleen shot DJ grateful looks; say what you would about that particular smartass, he knew just how to relate to his nieces and nephews, possibly because he still had a lot of child in him. The meal continued more or less normally, with no more incidents or injuries, which may actually have been an Eames record.

After everyone had finished eating, Alex and Colleen took Christopher upstairs to bathe him, laughing happily together at the amount of food that had managed to make its way into his ears and hair. Bobby was helping the others clean up when he felt a hand on his arm. Daniel leaned in close to say, "I'd like to talk to you alone a minute, Bobby."

His stomach churning, Bobby knew this was it. The Father Talk, the one Alex had hoped to prevent from happening, but of course Daniel Eames waited until she was otherwise occupied; no fools, these Eameses. Preparing himself for a lecture on getting involved with your partner, defiling Daniel's daughter, and generally being unsuited for serious relationships, Bobby was surprised at the friendly way Daniel invited him into his den, offering a drink. _Softening me up for the interrogation; clever, Mr. Eames, but not clever enough! This is my game, and if you think you can scare me away from your daughter, you've got another think coming. _Bobby was so enmeshed in his own paranoid thoughts, he missed the question Daniel had asked.

"Uh, I, what did you say?"

With a knowing smile, Daniel repeated, "You're aware of how much my daughter loves you, aren't you, Bobby?"

"I…uh, Eames loves me. I know." _Oh, way to be articulate, Goren. Hey! When the hell did Eames' voice get into my head? That's…interesting._

Daniel was suddenly very serious. "She doesn't just love you, Bobby, she likes you, she respects you; she's in love with you. I've never seen her this happy. When Joseph was killed, I thought that was it for her; she retreated inside herself, and I thought we'd never get her back. I was wrong, and her mother told me so. Katie said 'She'll be okay, Danny, she's our Baby Girl, and she's made of strong stuff. And the right man will come along, and he'll love her, and she'll be okay.' I learned early in my marriage never to argue with Katie; God rest her soul, but she could make me wish I'd never been born when I was wrong." He laughed at the memory, but it brought sadness too.

Refocusing his attention on Goren, he spoke emotionally. "It was rough near the end there, Bobby, when she was so sick, and there was nothing I could do to help her. I…I need to know if you can be strong for my girl if something like that happened to her. Do you love her enough to stand by her through the worst life has to offer?"

Taken aback by the depth of Daniel's feelings, and reminded, too, of his own mother's situation, Bobby met Daniel's eyes, and said in a strong and even voice, "I can love her through anything, Daniel, and I would never be able to do anything else but be with her, no matter what the circumstances are."

Nodding, Daniel smiled. "Then you two will be fine. I know she loves you enough; I just needed to make sure you love her enough. Life is a lot of things, Bobby, not all honeymoons and roses, and life with my daughter won't always be easy. She's stubborn, which she got solely from her mother's side of the family, of course. She's a lot like her mother was, so let me tell you this: she's worth it. Whatever you have to go through together; if you get separated at work, if you scream at each other over the remote, or the burned dinner, or the mortgage, if you have one child or ten, having a woman like that love you the way she does is worth anything tough you have to do to keep it."

Neither man was winning the battle to keep tears out of his eyes, but it was okay. Bobby came to realize that he had gained not only a friend, but a true ally who understood him; Daniel began to see the depth of this man's love for his daughter, and to realize that she had, all on her own, found her perfect match. When they had collected themselves, Daniel reached out his hand to take Bobby's in a manly handshake.

"Welcome to the family. We're glad to have you."

**A/N – Thank you for continuing to read and review; you guys make my day.**


	19. Chapter 19

10:19 AM

Beth was laughing merrily at the tales of the mighty Eames clan when she realized that Alex wasn't joining in.

"Alex? What's wrong? Is something that happened with your family bothering you?"

Alex, momentarily lost in thought, was slow to respond. "No…yeah…I don't know." She gave Beth a wan smile. "Helpful, huh?"

Beth smiled back. "Indecision is verrrrrrry interesting." She was trying to make Alex laugh, and it worked, but she wasn't really surprised when that short bark of laughter quickly led to tears. Silently she handed over a box of tissues and waited for Alex to finish letting it all out. When it seemed her patient was regaining emotional balance, Beth spoke. "Okay, Alex, what was that about? And don't tell me you don't know, because we both know you do."

Alex snorted. "I don't try and hide stuff from you anymore, Beth. It's a waste of time." She sighed, "It's funny, because what's upsetting me is how nice it was; being with Bobby openly, able to show how I feel. And my family really likes him and they're happy for us; my Dad even gave Bobby his version of a blessing."

"Well, those are all good things, right? What makes them turn negative for you?"

"They're not negative, they make me happy, but things aren't like that at work. Bobby and I are so worried about anyone finding out about us that we end up being colder to each other than we ever have before. It's like our connection, that thing that made us good partners, is dangerous, so we suppress it. And we end up feeling distant from each other. I actually think it affects our job performance; not a lot, not for other people to see, but I feel it."

Alex rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand, and it occurred to Beth how tired she must be. The last few months of her life had been rife with emotional upheavals; not all of them bad, but still, it had to be somewhat draining. "What do you think you can do to fix that, Alex?"

"The only thing I know that will fix it is for Bobby and I to 'fess up. Go to Ross, tell our story, and let the chips fall where they may."

"So why don't you?"

Alex' voice was so quiet it was almost a whisper. "I would, but Bobby doesn't want to. He's afraid, with good reason by the way, that we'll be split up, maybe even assigned to different squads."

Beth caught her eye. "Are you afraid of that, Alex?"

She nodded. "I am, but not the way Bobby is. He went through a lot of partners before we got assigned to each other, and it was very hard on him. He wasn't able to do what he loves best to the best of his abilities. He hated it, and he doesn't want to go through that again, so…"

Beth interrupted, "You're what Bobby loves best, Alex. You know that."

Alex looked up, eyes moist with emotion. "I do know that; I just think he's so afraid of what might happen he's not paying attention to what is happening. We're short-tempered with each other, tense all day, and then we go home and try to act like we're two completely different people. And that was working, for a while, but I don't want to spend my days pushing him away, and being pushed away, when it was so…so relaxing to just be who we are together. At least it was until we found out about Jimmy making bets on us. Since then, the whole situation has gotten worse. There's a lot of tension under the surface, even when we're alone together. And I don't want that; we both deserve better than that."

"You need to tell him this, Alex. He can't meet your needs unless you express them."

Alex exploded. "Screw you and your shrink bullshit, lady! I can't tell him this. I promised him he would never need another partner, and I won't break that promise."

Beth responded calmly, "Screw you and your excuses, Detective. Do you really think telling your captain will mean the end of your partnership?"

Taken aback, Alex answered quietly. "No, I don't. I think that Ross will look at our solve rate, remember what Bobby was like to deal with when I was kidnapped, and look the other way. We'll be told not to flaunt our relationship, but we won't be forced to hide it anymore, either. And it needs to happen soon, before…"

"Before what?" Beth prompted.

"B-before his mother dies. She's dying, and he's a mess about it, and he's gonna be a bigger mess when it happens. And I don't want to be just his partner then; I don't want to go to her funeral and not be able to-to help him the way that I will when we're alone. I don't want him to feel abandoned because we have to hide what we are to each other." Her tears were threatening again, and she took a moment to collect herself before continuing. "Bobby has dealt with every single problem in his life alone. It's one of the saddest parts of who he is, and I want it to STOP. He's not alone anymore, he's never going to be alone again, and I need to make that known; to him, and whoever else is watching, regardless of what they think about it." Alex looked up at Beth, an almost defiant gleam in her eyes.

"Alex, Bobby knows he's not alone, even if you don't think he does. And whatever the both of you think about what the NYPD will do to you, I wouldn't be surprised if your relationship is already an accepted fact. You don't hide it nearly as well as you think."

Riled up now, Alex said, "What the hell does that mean? We hide it fine. It's just that my family knows me, and Jimmy saw us all the time, and…" Her voice grew softer as the facts sunk in.

Beth grinned. "And I figured it out in about 5 minutes, mostly because that kind of strong emotion is nearly impossible to suppress, but in part, because," she walked to the window, indicating the large and pacing man in front of her office building, "of that. You think Ross didn't notice that Bobby spent every night in the hospital, or that he comes here with you, or that when the two of you are in a room together you can see only each other? You're excellent detectives, I'm sure, but lousy hiders of evidence."

"Yeah," Alex admitted sheepishly. "We suck at crime."

Beth laughed, "Which means you're on the right side of it, careerwise. Now, has Bobby agreed to come back to another joint session with you?"

"He hasn't said it in so many words, but I think he actually wants to. He felt a lot better after the last time."

"Well, I'm really good at this shit." Alex laughed at Beth's cocky little stance. "Alex, why don't we schedule him to come with you next week, and we can talk about how you two will approach your captain? We can make a plan, which will probably help Bobby feel better, and maybe we can get into some of this tension between you, too. If it's enough to make you cry, it's enough to talk about with him."

Sighing dramatically, Alex said, "Well, okay, if you're forcing me, I guess I have to. Me and the big guy will see you next week." She started to get ready to leave when Beth approached her.

"I have a little coping mechanism for you, Alex, to help break the tension at work." She leaned in and whispered into her patient's ear.

Shocked, Alex gasped. "Beth! That's so…wicked. I like it." She left, swaying her hips in an exaggerated fashion on her way out, to Beth's tinkling laughter.

_A few hours later…_

Bobby was stunned when, in the middle of exploring a crime scene, Alex surreptitiously reached under his jacket and squeezed his butt.

_Well, I don't know what that did for his tension level_, she thought as she walked away, feeling his eyes burning into the back of her head, _but it sure as hell lowered mine._

**A/N – This is my very vague reference to "The War At Home" for this story, but as promised, it will stay firmly in the land of fluffy angst (or angsty fluff) of the personal kind. I also went back and made some minor adjustments to a few chapters, as the rerun of "Vacancy" reminded me that Alex is not the youngest sibling in her family. Damn canon. Anyway, thanks for continuing to read, and to deal with my ramblings.**

**PS – There's apparently a magazine called Self Healing, but I didn't swipe the title from that, I promise. And I don't own Criminal Intent, sad to say.**


	20. Chapter 20

7:20 PM

Alex let herself into Bobby's apartment quietly, but stood frozen at the noise she heard. It was awful, painful, unlike anything she had ever before experienced.

Bobby Goren was singing.

Well, she thought, singing was a generous term for what he was doing; caterwauling might be more accurate. It took her a moment to recognize the song, and then it was all over – her laughter could and would not be contained.

He found her prone on the couch, holding her stomach, laughing almost uncontrollably. The disapproving look on his face served merely to exacerbate the situation.

When he put his hands on his hips, looking down at her sternly, he bore an almost eerie resemblance to her 5th grade gym teacher, Mr. Clennon, who had worn just such an expression when telling her that it was not ladylike to knee one's opponents in the groin when playing basketball, even if she did score the winning basket as a result.

"Alexandra Eames! That's just – rude! You could be hurting my feelings, you know." He tried a puppy dog look, but she was too far gone for that now.

"B-Bobby, I'm sorry, but 'Whistle While You Work'? I never figured you for a Disney kind of guy. And your s-singing is, um, different." She was still giggling, but had regained some composure.

"I happen to like Snow White, okay? And clearly," he said, an arm sweeping dramatically towards her, "I have a thing for dwarves." He stomped off, back to the kitchen.

Her Irish fully up now, she followed him and spit out, "You. Did. NOT. Just. Go. There."

Turning to face her, the intimidation factor mitigated somewhat by the spatula in his hand, he retorted, "Oh, yeah, shorty, I went there. I'm in here slaving over a hot stove, cooking you dinner after you _molested_ me at work, and you insult me? You can dish it out but you can't take it, huh?"

One eyebrow rose up. "I _molested_ you? Don't you think you're overreacting just a little? Or should I call SVU and report myself?"

She moved so that she was standing directly in front of him, reached her arms around, and repeated her earlier actions, causing him to close his eyes and let out a small involuntary groan.

Grinning up at him, she asked, "What did you say? Was that no, stop, don't? Have it your way." She began to remove her hands when he tossed the spatula and grabbed her wrists, placing her hands back where they had been.

"What I said was, 'yes, please, do.'" He leaned down to kiss her, savoring her taste of sugar, coffee, and Alexness.

Finally pulling away, she peered around him to see what was on the stove. "Whatcha cookin'?"

Remembering, he grabbed his spatula and quickly turned the cutlets before they burned. "It's lemon chicken. You like that, right?"

"Mm-hmmm," she said, "but it has to bake now too. I hate waiting." She pouted prettily at him. "I know! We can talk while it bakes!" She then strolled out to the living room.

Puzzled, Bobby got dinner set in the oven before following her. Cautiously he asked, "Talk about what, Eames?"

"Whatever you want to talk about, Bobby," she chirped, relaxing in a corner of his sofa.

Somehow he suspected that her statement wasn't entirely truthful, but he decided to go with it. Sitting down to face her, he began the talking, matching her scary cheerful tone with one of his own. "Well, why don't we talk about you grabbing my ass at a scene today. Why did you do that?"

Grinning like the Cheshire cat, Alex answered, "Because Beth told me to." She watched, amused, as Bobby sputtered.

"B-Beth told you to grab my ass? What the hell kind of therapy are you in, Eames?"

"Oh, she wasn't that specific. I came up with the ass-grabbing all on my own." Laughingly, she explained Beth's coping mechanism for her discomfort with their distance at work, and for Bobby's benefit, she used big words like decompartmentalization and reestablishment. By the time she was finished, his agitation was palpable.

"So she wants us to come back together, and, and formulate some sort of strategy to tell Ross about us? Why do we need to do this so soon, Eames? Things are fine the way they are."

Having already formulated and begun implementing a strategy all her own, Alex answered, her voice calm and even. "Things are not fine, Bobby." She reached out to pat his arm reassuringly when she saw the expected panic in his eyes. "Don't get me wrong. Things are great when we're alone, but a little strained when we're at work, don't you think?" _Ha! Ball in your court, buddy._

Knowing, but not liking, that she was right, Bobby measured his own words in response. "I know I've been more distant with you at work, Eames, but that's because I have a hard time doing anything halfway; you know that about me. If I see you as _this _you when we're working, anyone and everyone around us will know what's going on."

"So what?"

"So I don't want a different partner, that's what." His voice rose along with his frustration at having to explain himself to her. _She knows this._

Equally frustrated, Alex' voice was on the rise as well. "I don't want a different partner either, Bobby, but that's what I've got these days. We're not working together as well as we should, and if it gets much worse, we won't have any kind of defense against being split up when the truth comes out. And it will come out. My family knew, your mother knew, Deakins knew! We can't keep hiding our heads in the sand, hoping no one notices. They all noticed before WE did!" She shot him an accusing glare.

Shocked at her look, he got defensive. "Are you saying this was MY fault? How the hell do you figure that?"

Getting up and pacing around, she flailed her arms about in frustration. _Oh, dear God. This is how it begins. Soon I'll start smelling weird shit for fun. _"It IS your fault, Bobby, because you always…look at me that way." Nodding, she crossed her arms in front of her, waiting for him to agree and apologize.

"I look at YOU that way? You look at me like I'm a hot meal and you're starving. All…lusty and…stuff." He stood now, too, towering over her with his arms crossed, too.

Yup, you guessed it. A standoff.

It didn't last long, however, because Alex couldn't let that last remark die peacefully. "Lusty and stuff? Oh, you erudite bastard, you. I can't imagine how you stayed single so long with lines like that one."

Moving closer, almost but not quite touching her, he got right in her face. "And I can't imagine how _you_ stayed single with your easygoing and demure personality."

"Well, I wanted YOU, you idiot."

"Well, I wanted YOU, you bitch."

Alex' giggle fit returned in a flurry, and she closed the minute distance between them to wrap her arms around Bobby's waist. Laughing into his chest, she said, "Boy, thank God we found each other, because no one else would put up with either one of us."

Pulling her tighter, he whispered softly, "Yeah. Thank God." Angling his head back slightly to look in her eyes, he asked quietly, "You really need to get it out in the open?"

She nodded.

"Okay, then. Let's do it. But if Beth asks me to grab Ross' ass, I am outta there."

Her laughter was cut off by his kiss, and then she was just too busy to find anything funny anymore.

**A/N – I don't own anything, so please don't sue me because that would suck. Reading and reviewing, however, do not suck. They're the non-suck.  Thanks for sticking with me on this story; all your comments help me keep improving, and I really appreciate it.**


	21. Chapter 21

3:43 PM

Looking across their desks at Bobby, Alex resisted the urge to hum the theme to "Mission: Impossible," but not by much. Captain Ross had just hung up the phone, and it was time for what she, Beth and Bobby had come to refer to as 'Showdown at the MCS Corral.' She cocked her head to draw Bobby's attention to the Captain's office, and nearly laughed aloud when he swallowed hard, realizing that the time had come.

**--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

The Plan, Part One

"Okay." Beth said. "Now that we've resolved you are both (pointed look at Bobby) ready for this, here's what I think you should do. Wait for an opportune moment, when Captain Ross isn't busy, isn't pissed off, and seems relatively open to discussion."

Bobby had grinned while Alex glared. He laughed, "Oh, so we won't be doing this soon, then?"

Alex then smiled wickedly. "Well, Goren, he may not always be open to conversation with you, but he seems to like talking to me." She winked at Beth as Bobby muttered, "A little too much for my taste."

Beth arched an eyebrow. "Oh? Is there something I should know?"

Smiling directly at Bobby, Alex answered, "The captain has, in Bobby's opinion, a little crush on me. I think he just admires my saintly tolerance of my partner. It's Logan who's got the actual crush."

Were it possible, Bobby's head would have exploded. "LOGAN! How do you know that? Did he say something to you? Did he TOUCH you?"

Patting his hand sweetly (if a little patronizingly), Alex said, "I just have the men of Major Case falling at my feet, Goren. I got it like that."

"Alexandra…" he growled.

Nodding to Beth that she would handle this, Alex asked, "Pisses you off, doesn't it, Bobby?"

"Yes," he spat through clenched teeth.

"Wanna do something about it?"

"YES!"

"Great. Now cut the shit and let's figure out how we're going to let everyone know I is your woman now."

**------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

Looking down at her now as they approached Ross' office, Bobby realized how well and fully she'd played him. Eames of all people knew that his macho possessive side was reserved only for those he thought did not appropriately revere and respect her, and that he counted Ross and Logan among them. Little did she know that he generally included everyone of the male persuasion in that group, but a man had to retain some aura of mystery, after all.

_They have no idea who this woman really is. And they never will._

These thoughts sustained him as he and his partner entered their captain's office and sat down. He surprised her by being the one to initiate the conversation as, in a strong voice, he stated, "Captain Ross, Detective Eames and I have something we need to tell you."

**--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

The Plan, Part Two

Beth nodded. "So you've made it into his office and have let him know you have something to discuss. I recommend you do your absolute best to stay calm, whatever his reaction."

Both women looked at Bobby to see how he took that particular piece of advice. He spread his hands in a classic "who, me?" gesture. "Who, me? I'll have you know I am a very calm and controlled individual."

Alex snorted. "Yeah, right. The SUV has dents from all the times you've gone all "calm and controlled" on its ass."

Beth interrupted before Bobby had a chance to respond. "Well, let's practice. I'll be your captain, and you be yourselves. Okay?"

They nodded, one of them reluctantly.

"Good morning, Detectives. How are you both?" Beth chirped.

Alex burst out laughing. "Um…that was good, but be a man, okay?"

Beth nodded. "Got it. Hey, detectives, what's up?" she said, manfully.

Bobby bit back his laughter as Alex went into the whole "something to tell you" spiel.

BethRoss said, "Well, what is it?"

Realizing that Bobby was going to be zero help, Alex said, "Detective Goren and I are involved – personally" She paused. "With, you know, each other."

"How the hell did that happen?"

Alex was momentarily stumped, not expecting to have to tell the captain a love story. Bobby, on the other hand, was attempting to rein in his temper, and kept his mouth shut in service of that goal.

"Okay, never mind the details." BethRoss continued. "You two know the rules; you'll have to be assigned to new partners. If there aren't detectives on this squad willing to do it, we'll look into transferring you to other squads."

Bobby lost it. "You can't do that! I don't want another partner, goddammit!" He slammed his palms onto Beth's desk, startling her. She stared openmouthed, having never seen this side of Bobby before. Alex, on the other hand, seemed to have grown preternaturally calm.

"Bobby, sit down," she said soothingly. "He might not say that."

Sitting, placing his head in his hands, he mumbled, "Yes, he will. He'll split us apart, Eames."

She stepped in front of him and placed her hands on either side of his face, tilting his eyes up to hers. "Don't you see? Even if they sent us to opposite ends of the five boroughs, they'll never split us up. We have this now." She leaned in to kiss him as Beth watched with a smile.

Breaking the kiss, Bobby smiled up at Alex. "You're right."

"As always," she sighed dramatically.

"Okay, let's not take it too far." He grinned, then both turned to Beth.

"You guys ready to try this again?" she asked.

And so they were; and so they did.

**---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

Sitting in Ross' office, watching his face go from white to purple then back to white again, Alex realized that their rehearsal had been fatally flawed. None of them knew this man well enough to predict his behavior, and stunned, distressed silence hadn't been a scenario they'd even remotely considered.

This was all kinds of bad.

It was time for her to step in and save the day.

"Captain, are you all right?" she asked softly. The raw disappointment in his eyes when he looked at her made her realize she should never have questioned Bobby's insight into human nature, and sent the first tinglings of fear traveling along her spine. Ross might have even more reason than the obvious to be upset about this information.

As the captain brought himself under control, he spoke in a low voice. "Is this…relationship of a, well, of a serious nature?"

Bobby answered with a firm "yes," and Alex nodded her agreement, all plans of saving the day having flown out the window, along with her voice, at this point.

"Do you plan to get married?"

To her surprise, Bobby responded with another firm "yes," and again, she found herself nodding. _Oh, fabulous. "How did you get engaged, Grandma?" "Oh, sweetie, it was so romantic. Captain Ross asked Grandpa, and I nodded. Rrrowwwrrr."_

For some reason, her own internal sarcasm strengthened her enough to find her voice. "Captain, we're very serious about each other, or we wouldn't be here. But we want to stay partners if we can."

Ross nodded. "I want you to stay partners if you can too. The thought of trying to find someone else who can deal with Goren is mind-numbing."

Bobby was nodding his assent when Alex snapped. "Hey! Don't talk about him like that. I'm sure either of us can find a position on any squad we want to, and the FBI has been after Goren for years, so you can shove the fucking attitude!"

As both men stared at her, looking like two fish gasping for air, Alex realized she'd just revealed the second fatal flaw in their plan; Bobby wasn't the only one with a temper.

**-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

The Plan, Part Three

Beth smiled. "You guys did really well there. Very calm, unemotional but firm in your conviction not to hide the relationship. Great job. Now we need to talk about how to convince Captain Ross to keep your partnership intact. Alex, I think this is where you can take the lead; give Bobby a chance to breathe."

Alex nodded. "I can do that. I'll just be very clinical about it; bring up our solve rate, the fact that it's not only been sustained but has actually improved since our relationship began, vaguely discuss the other squads and agencies that have expressed interest."

"Perfect. I think you guys are in great shape."

Bobby and Alex smiled at each other. It was going to be okay.

**-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

Bobby and Ross stared at each other. This was far from okay.

Alex was storming around the room now, muttering to herself about plans, clinical calmness, and men trying to tell her what to do. Neither of the men in the room had a single clue as to what to say to calm her down, but Ross finally took a shot.

"Eames! I'm not splitting you up! Cool off!"

Well, that stopped her. Staring at Ross suspiciously, she asked, "Even after what I just said with the shoving?"

He laughed and gave Goren a rueful look. "Detective, if I got angry every time a woman lost her temper at me, I wouldn't have made it through the academy, much less to captain."

Stunned, Alex said, "Well, okay, then. Thanks." She looked at Bobby, who then silently followed her from the room.

As the rest of the squad stared at them, he leaned down to whisper in her ear. "Way to stay cool and clinical there, Eames. I think you scared him into submission. And as a bonus for me, scared the crush right out of him" He grinned at her, causing her to smile back. They were happily lost in each other when a slap on Bobby's back broke the reverie.

"Goren! Finally broke her down, I hear. You're a lucky man." Mike Logan waggled his eyebrows suggestively at Alex, who quickly grabbed Bobby's hand to keep him from socking the wiseass.

Bobby stuttered, "How the hell did you know? We just told Ross."

Mike grinned. "Deakins. He had to let us know the pool results. And thanks, by the way. I had to split my winnings, but I still made out pretty good."

Alex narrowed her eyes at him. "Split them with Deakins?"

"Oh, no, he wasn't still in the pool, he was just administering it. I split it with someone else."

From behind her, Alex heard a lilting female voice say, "Me, actually."

Alex and Bobby turned in unison to see Lynne Bishop smiling at them, looking for all the world like the cat who'd swallowed the canary. "Congratulations. I do have one request for you, though, Eames."

Disbelieving, Alex whispered, "Okay. What is it?"

Lynne chuckled and leaned in to whisper, "If Goren knocks you up, you better give me enough notice for a head start. I'm saving vacation days." She sauntered off with Logan.

Alex and Bobby stared at each other, wide-eyed. Then it struck them, and there was nothing left to do but laugh.

And so they did.

**A/N – If you think I intentionally left ya a little cliffhanger about whether that was actually a proposal, I did. 'Cuz I'm evil. Mwah-hah-hah. Thanks for reading!**


	22. Chapter 22

5:36 PM

Alex drove home on autopilot, lost in thought. By unspoken agreement, she and Bobby had gone their separate ways at the end of the day. Their confrontation with Ross had left them both, while elated, drained and a little confused.

_He's not going to split us up. _She smiled at the thought. While it was heartening to know their partnership was in no imminent danger, Alex was concerned with Bobby's affirmative answer to Ross' question about marriage.

_Did he really mean that, or was he just testing Ross like he would a suspect he was interrogating? Push further than was expected, and get the result you need._

Alex didn't really think Bobby would toy with her in that way, but the situation had been so stressful that he might have spoken without thinking it through.

_And I was no help,_ she thought ruefully. _Nodding like a moron, then losing my shit. Even if he had meant it then, he's probably rethinking it now._

_--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------_

And of course he was; thinking it, rethinking it, analyzing it, and thinking it some more.

As he made his way through the crowded midtown streets, Bobby kept thinking about Eames nodding mutely, and what it meant. He had thought about it on the way up here on the subway, after thinking about it for the last few hours, and he was still no closer to an answer.

The crowds that surrounded him on the sidewalk were a mere distraction when compared to the disturbing nature of his thoughts.

_She nodded. She didn't say "Oh, hell no, I would never marry this freak," but she didn't say "Oh, yes, I can't wait to marry this stud" either._

The Eames that had begun living in his head took offense at this. _Stud? _she asked. Then she smacked him on the back of the head.

Absently he rubbed the spot as if actual injury had occurred. _Perhaps stud was taking it too far, _he argued, _but you didn't exactly jump up and down with excitement, did you?_

_Bobby, _mental Eames snorted, _in the 6 ½ years you've known me, have you ever seen me jump up and down?_

_No, _he agreed, _but this would have been the perfect time to do it!_

Mental Eames laughed wryly at this, which annoyed him. _You know, you're a figment of MY imagination. I should turn you into Stepford Eames; you can agree with everything I say, and be all…_

_Brain-dead?_

_No._

_Silicone-infused?_

_NO! Just…agreeable. You know, say yes to everything._

_You would hate that._

_Not if it meant you said yes to marrying me!!_

_I did, you idiot! You just had to think about it instead of confirming with the real me._

_You said yes?_

_I did. And I'm probably wondering right now why you're here and I'm somewhere else, so go DEAL WITH ME!_

Even an imaginary, only in his head Eames could put Bobby back on track. He smiled, realizing what he needed to do. Looking up to orient, he noticed where his thoughts had led him.

_Ah, thank you, mental Eames. Good idea._

_--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------_

Actual corporeal Eames, meanwhile, had decided to hash things out with her sister Colleen. Colleen, however, was finding the whole thing far too amusing to be of any help.

"He told the captain he wanted to marry you before he told you?"

"Yup."

"And you nodded."

"Yup."

Alex held the phone away from her ear as fresh peals of laughter erupted from Colleen's end of the line. Finally she grew tired of waiting.

"COLLEEN!"

"Heh-heh. What?"

"A little help, please? Now what should I do?"

Colleen tried to rein it in; Alex sounded pretty distressed. "Alex, this is a…heh…unusual situation, but I think you should talk to him and find out what's up."

Alex considered this. "Talk to him?"

"Yeah, or, you know, gesture with your head. Whatever." Colleen was off again, and Alex thanked her sarcastically, swore her to secrecy on penalty of Dad finding out the real reason her underwear ended up in the mailbox on prom night, and hung up.

"Shit." _Talk to him, huh? What if he doesn't want to talk?_

_Who am I kidding? It's Bobby. He always wants to talk – to me._

She turned the car around.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ana waved off her manager, who for the third time was trying to interrupt the ranting big dude to tell him that the store was closing. Ana didn't mind, though; she was enjoying him, and liked the way he was talking about (and occasionally to) this Eames person.

"Sir? Did you want to pick something out?"

He looked at her, momentarily stunned, as if he had forgotten she was even there. "It's not that easy. It has to be perfect, you know, and she's…special."

She smiled at him, "Of course she is, or you wouldn't be here. But you see that uptight lady over there waving at you?" He looked and nodded. "She's the manager, and the store is supposed to be closing now, so she's going to make you leave soon. Perhaps you should come back tomorrow."

"Oh, no! This can't wait until tomorrow. I'll pick it now. Like I said, she's small, so it can't be too big and overwhelming, and I can't really afford that anyway. But I don't want something boring, either. What should I do, Eames?"

Ana was beginning to think that he was crossing the line between merely funny and eccentric and time to call security, but she went with it. "Sir? If you don't want to be traditional, may I make a suggestion?" She led him to another area of the store and brought out an item for his approval. She was encouraged when his face lit up with a beatific smile.

"I'll take it."

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Alex finally gave up. Bobby wasn't answering his door, and she wasn't going to let herself in if he wasn't in the mood to talk.

_Or he went out and tied one on out of sheer terror._

She sighed, and made her way home.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Bobby was ready to give up when he heard footsteps coming up the stairs. He waited, and was gratified when an admittedly tired-looking Eames came face to face with him outside her door.

"Hi."

"Hi."

**Mwah-hah-hah. I am now my own evil twin. Okay, truth be told, it got a little long, so I'm breaking it up. I hope to update again tonight. Thanks for reading!**


	23. Chapter 23

8:10 PM

"Hi."

"Hi."

"You weren't home."

"I was here."

"So I see." She unlocked the door, surprised to see him hesitate at the threshold. "Do you want to come in?"

Distracted, he muttered, "Oh yeah," then followed her inside, mentally chastising himself for being less than suave at this moment. Unsure of what to do with himself, he hung his coat and fidgeted just inside the doorway, until a small pair of hands encircled his waist.

Pulling Bobby close, Alex leaned up to kiss him, and he automatically bent down to accommodate her.

"Hi again," she smiled.

"I like that greeting better," he grinned, kissing her again for good measure.

"Me too." She sighed, leaning her head against his chest. "Do you want something to eat?"

"Maybe later. I, uh, I need to talk to you."

Her heart froze. _This is it, this is where he says that he didn't mean it. _Looking up at him, a suspicious glint in her eye, she asked, "About what?"

_Oh, about my being an unromantic and big-mouthed dork. _"About, uh, what I said in Ross' office today."

Pulling away, she walked over to her futon and sat down. "Oh. I wanted to talk to you about that too. You shouldn't feel obligated because of something you said under stress. Don't worry about it."

Stunned, it took Bobby a moment to respond. "Eames, that's not what I meant! I'm the one who should be telling you not to worry; your nod was not a binding agreement."

She squinted at him. "I'm confused. Are you saying you meant what you said and think I don't want to, or that you didn't mean what you said because you don't want to?"

"Uh, Eames, I have no idea what the hell you just asked me, so can I say something?"

"Okay." She looked up at him expectantly, reading his eyes and feeling her stomach start to twitch. He moved over to her and sat down awkwardly, knees nearly touching his chest. She would have laughed at the sight if her heart hadn't started doing the cha-cha.

Taking her right hand in his left, he brought it to his lips and kissed her palm. "I love you."

Smiling softly, she whispered, "I love you too."

He let out a big breath of tension. "Good thing, because I've never done this before and I may need your help."

She laughed, "Okay."

"Would you like me to get down on one knee?"

Suddenly incapable of coherent speech, she simply shook her head no.

He growled, "You. Will give. Verbal. Answers."

Giggling, she said, "No, that's not necessary, Bobby."

Turning to face her, he smiled nervously. "Okay, here it goes. Alexandra Margaret Eames, I want to spend the rest of my life with you. You are the best friend I've ever had, the most extraordinary woman I've ever known, and the luckiest thing that has ever happened to me."

She was unabashedly crying now, but tried to speak. "Bobby, I…"

"I wasn't finished," he objected.

"Oh, sorry," she chuckled, wiping tears from her face.

"You're also beautiful, and hot, and smart, and funny, and the best partner anyone could ever have, and you make my life a much happier place to be." He looked over to make sure she wasn't going to interrupt again, but she was staring at him like a deer in headlights. _I hope that's a good sign. _"So, without our captain around, I wanted to ask you – will you marry me? Please answer OUT LOUD." He grinned at her.

"Hot, huh?"

"I swear to God, Eames…"

Laughing and crying, she threw her arms around him and said "Yes, Bobby. I want to marry you." She kissed his ear and whispered "yes" again to make sure he understood, as he pulled her onto his lap and buried his head in her neck.

They stayed that way for some time, just enjoying the peace of the moment together, when Bobby jerked, nearly knocking Alex to the floor.

"What the? Bobby!" She grappled for balance, and he quickly caught her before she tumbled off his lap.

"Sorry, I just, uh, I-I forgot something." Reaching into the inside pocket of his jacket, he drew out a small, turquoise box.

"You're kidding," she said breathlessly.

Not understanding, he said, "No, I'm serious. Look, I got a ring." He opened the box and the velvet one inside it to reveal a small but beautiful square-cut sapphire with a round diamond on each side of it, set slightly askew.

Alex was speechless. _This has to be a record for the number of times in one day I can't say anything. Must. Find. Voice._

"Bobby, that's gorgeous! You didn't have to get me something so…so…"

Voice husky with emotion, he said, "You deserve the best. It's blue for NYPD, see, and then the diamonds are like us. Not quite evenly set, but…perfect anyway." Her eyes were round as saucers, and again finding herself without words, she simply kissed him as if kissing were going to be outlawed tomorrow.

He was very proud of himself. _She likes it! Go, mental Eames and Ana! _ Reluctantly pulling away from her kiss, he asked, "C-can I, uh, put it on you?"

She grinned. "Were you planning to wear it?"

"Oh, great, you get your voice back and it's all smartass again. I may like you all stunned and quiet." He smiled at her, then placed the ring on her finger, hoping his guess at her size had been in the ballpark.

It was a perfect fit, and for a few moments, she just stared at the ring on her hand, overwhelmed by all it meant, and all it represented. More than six years earlier, when she had shaken the hand of the giant they'd brought in to be her partner, she would never have guessed this was where it would all end up. A sudden thought occurred to her, and she hopped off Bobby's lap and ran to her closet.

A bit taken aback, Bobby yelled, "It's a studio, Eames. If you're trying to escape you went the wrong way!"

Reappearing, she smirked, "Hilarious, Goren, you should become a comedian." She held a small box in her hands, and returned to the futon and his lap. Holding the box out to him, she explained. "This is the pin the academy gives you when you graduate; I'm sure you have one too." He nodded. "This is mine. I want to – I want you to have it."

He took it from her reverently, and spent a moment appreciating the value of what she was giving him. He knew how hard she had to work to earn this pin; truth be told, female candidates had it much harder than their male counterparts, and offering it to him was her way of expressing the depth of her devotion and trust. He thought back to the day he'd met the famously hard-assed Alex Eames, and had nearly dropped his teeth when he realized that not only was she a woman, but a tiny, incredibly feminine woman. Little had he known what the future would hold, but he did remember thinking how lucky he was to have found her. That sentiment had much more depth now, and he vowed to himself never to forget it.

With shaking hands, he placed the pin on the lapel of his jacket, where it could be seen and admired. Smiling at her, he nearly missed what she'd said.

"This is a MUCH better story for the grandchildren. Except we won't tell them about this next part."

And she made good on her bargain; the next part was certainly not appropriate for children. Adults, on the other hand, had a mighty good time.

**A/N – Sorry I didn't do this last night – damn real life and its demands on my time! We're almost done here, kids, and in case I forget to say it, THANK YOU!**


	24. Epilogue

10:18 AM

"Niiiiiiice." Beth drawled with a grin, admiring the ring Alex hadn't been able to take her eyes off for days. "Did he pick it out himself? I'm impressed."

Alex laughed, "Well, according to him, he had help from a very sweet salesperson named Ana, and me, apparently, but he knew it was right when he saw it, so you can still be impressed."

"Help from you? Didn't you say the ring was a surprise?"

"That's the funny part. According to Bobby, he heard my voice telling him what to do, like an internal ass-whooper."

Beth laughed, "Well, that's different. Not that you'd expect anything else from Bobby – he is definitely unique."

"That he is," Alex smiled, "but it gets better. We were interrogating a suspect the other day, and without consciously thinking about it, I walked over to the guy, and leaned over sideways," she hopped up and demonstrated, "to look into his eyes. That is a classic Goren maneuver. Scared the shit out of myself."

Beth asked, "What did Goren himself do?"

"After putting his eyes back in his head? He got all macho proud, like, see, I've made her into a mini-me."

"Oh, boy. You must have loved that."

Alex snorted. "Yeah, I was thrilled, but about 10 minutes later, he apologized, so I suspect his inner me must have given him a talking-to. It's very convenient, actually. All the results without having to do any of the bitching."

"Did your Goren maneuver work on the suspect?"

Alex answered with a laugh, "Not really, no. I think it's less effective when you only have to bend over, like, six inches, plus Bobby and I laughing didn't help matters any. We got the guy," she said with pride, "but we had to work harder to do it, so I'm not planning any repeat performances."

Smiling, Beth asked, "And how are things otherwise? Is the tension better since you spoke to Captain Ross?"

"Much better. We're actually communicating without speaking again; I really think getting over that hurdle deepened our connection at work. And as long as our work doesn't suffer, Ross says our partnership is in no danger."

"That's good news; I assume Bobby is relieved?"

"Immensely. He also feels my little outburst in Ross' office put any crush situation out to pasture, so he's feeling very secure right now. And a secure Bobby is…"

"What?" Beth prodded.

"I don't know how to explain it. He's still him, but more so, almost. Like he trusts that he'll be understood. It makes me very happy to see him like this."

Gently, Beth said, "You realize there will be days when you don't understand him and he doesn't feel secure, don't you?"

A bit deflated, Alex nodded.

Correctly interpreting Alex' silence as inner defiance, Beth continued, "Alex, I'm not trying to minimize how happy you make Bobby; I've seen it for myself. But you need to know that you can't always rescue him, just like you can't go back in time to prevent that other Alex from picking on him. You can't make yourself responsible if he has a bad day. You're his partner, and you're going to be his wife, but don't appoint yourself his savior."

Alex nodded, taking this all in. "I don't think I'm his savior any more than he's mine. We-we hold each other up; our strengths and weaknesses work well together. We save each other; does that make sense?"

"It does," Beth smiled, "and it sounds like an excellent foundation for a long and happy marriage."

"I think so, too," Alex agreed with a grin.

"So how are your nightmares?"

"The nightmares are…better. I still wake up sometimes, and I still get the adrenaline rush, but I calm down a lot faster now. It may have something to do with the giant teddy bear I sleep with; I'm just guessing though."

Grinning, Beth said. "That's great news, Alex, and if it's big teddy bear-related, more power to him. Have you decided yet about what to do with your house?"

Absently brushing a stray hair behind her ear, Alex said, "Yeah, I'm going to sell it to my brother DJ. He wants to buy a place, and I don't really want to move back there, and Bobby doesn't want to live there either, so it worked out. DJ will take good care of the place, and he can afford my family discount, so…"

"So where are you going to live?" Beth asked.

"We're going to live at Bobby's while we look for a bigger place. He claims my futon has broken his back, but he's really quite fond of it; I may have to bring it over to his place, if only for sentimental value."

Beth laughed, "I'm imposing a don't ask, don't tell policy on that, my friend. And I really hate to say it, but we're almost out of time. I know this is your last required session, Alex, but I want you to call me if you have any setbacks, or if you just need to talk, okay?"

Alex smiled. "Thank you. I may take you up on that." Shyly she said, "And thank you for everything; I know I haven't been the most cooperative patient, but you've really helped me, and I do appreciate it." She stepped forward and hugged Beth warmly.

Returning the embrace, Beth said, "Well, I hope to be invited to the wedding!"

Stepping back, Alex smirked, "Nope, sorry. We've decided it will just be the two of us for that, but my family's going to throw us a monster party afterward, and you'd better be there."

Curious, Beth asked, "Why just the two of you?"

Alex smiled softly. "That's the way it started – just the two of us. We kind of want to make the actual ceremony about that, you know?"

Beth nodded. "I get it. Good luck to you, Alex, and I'll look forward to that party." Walking out, Alex blew her a kiss and winked. Beth grinned, then walked over to the window. Bobby was outside, but not pacing this time, just leaning up against their car, waiting patiently. Beth watched as his eyes lit up and he smiled broadly when Alex appeared, walking up to him and leaning up for a kiss. He put his arms around her and looked up, noticing Beth in the window. He held up a hand in a wave, and he, too, winked.

Beth smiled at him, then headed over to her desk. Picking up the file that said Eames, Detective Alexandra, she wrote under her notes, "Case Closed."

A funny thought occurred to her. _I wonder what the hell he's going to call her if she changes her name. _She chuckled to herself, then settled back to await the arrival of her next patient.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2:34 AM

Two pairs of eyes flew open; one set brown, the other hazel. For a moment, they just stared at each other, but then a smile came over both their faces.

"C'mon, honey, let's go back to sleep. We've got a long day at work tomorrow."

And holding each other close, they went back to a peaceful sleep together.

**A/N – Well, that's all she wrote, literally. Get it? I crack myself up. Merry and Happy whatever you celebrate, and my endless thanks to those of you who've stuck this story out with me, praised me most undeservedly, and helped me find my errors and correct them. You guys are the bomb. Now go be all holiday-spirity!**


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